Questions tagged [past-simple]
Questions related to the past simple, simple past or preterite, which is mainly used to describe events in the past.
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Would have or would
Which one of these is correct?
She would have destroyed them if she wanted to
She would destroy them if she wanted to
To my knowledge the first one implies a hypothetical situation about something ...
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Which is correct? "Today I've done something that I've never done before." or "Today I've done something I never did before
Question: Which is correct? "Today I've done something that I've never done before." or "Today I've done something I never did before.
Personally, the second one seems the most logical ...
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“Have you known” or “Did you know”?
First of all, I know it has been mentioned before but I'm not sure which is correct. I've been learning about the Past Simple and the Past Perfect and if I've understood correctly, well, in high level:...
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Present perfect or simple past
Which of the following is correct?
It has been two hours since I have left LA.
It has been two hours since I left LA.
I know everyone will pick 2 but why one is 1 is not correct as we use ...
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What should I use (Past perfect or Past Simple)
I have the following sentences. And must choose on of the tences (Past Simple, Past Perfect, Past Continuos, Past Perfect Continuos):
Sally Deedes was walking home late one night. She (be) to a ...
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Past Continuous with yesterday
I am trying to figure out if it's possible to use past continuous without specific time or interruption while talking about yesterday.
Here's the situation: I want to tell my friend how I spent my day ...
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Do I use the past simple or the present perfect after "I've been meaning" as in "I've been meaning to do something, but I've always forgotten/forgot"?
Could you tell me if I have to use the past simple or the present perfect after I've been meaning in the context below?
I've been meaning to watch the movie, but I always forgot to till now.
I've ...
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“I rode / was riding / used to ride a bike every day”
Which tense should I use if I was on a holiday which lasted two weeks and during that time I rode a bike every day?
It was a great time because I rode a bike every day. (Past Simple)
It was a great ...
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Is there any difference in meaning between the past simple and the past continuous when used before "till" or "until"?
Could you tell me if there is any difference in meaning between the past simple and the past continuous when used before till? For example:
I worked till midnight and then went to bed.
I was working ...
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"Joan walked out and has left her bag"
(1) Joan walked out and has left her bag
It seems that (1) is not good because it violates a tense agreement rule. Is that right? Then, I am wondering what differences there exist between sentence (...
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Confusion with past and past perfect tense usage
I want to write a narrative in simple past tense. I have some confusion regarding the usage of past and past perfect tense. Kindly read the below narrative and provide guidance.
He asked me why I ...
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played guitar/had played guitar at the party
He is the man who played guitar at the party. This is stating a fact.
He is the man who was playing guitar at the party. This emphasizes the duration, but the meaning is
essentially the same as the ...
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<have> never had a girlfriend
Peter is a soldier. He's been fighting in a battle for days. Suppose he's now fatally injured. He's going to die soon. Lying in the arms of his army friend, he says,
I've never had a girlfriend.
I'...
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Looking for reference of present continuous and simple past in story telling?
The sentence being: After pulling the fisherman to safety, the groomsmen returned for more wedding photos on the jetty – this time in their underwear, dripping wet and a little battered and bruised.
...
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I've worked here for two years vs I worked here for two years
Let's look at the sentence:
I've been working here for two years.
This sentence means that I'm still working. Right?
I have worked here for two years.
I worked here for two years.
What's the meaning ...
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Why is Past Perfect used here?
This is an excerpt from "The Moon and Sixpence", by W Somerset Maugham, the very beginning of chapter 18:
had this in my workbook as an example of a specific use of past perfect (the use i ...
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Past perfect + Past Simple in indirect speech
Could someone please explain why don't we use Past Perfect twice in this sentence?
She told me that a man in a black mask had come up to her and mugged
her just in the middle of the street.
I ...
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Is it equal to reported speech case?
Reported speech case:
He said I would do it
Direct speech:
He said, "I will do it."
My sentence:
He thought that he WILL / WOULD do it tomorrow
Question:
In my sentence should I use '...
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"How did you get in here? Security!" vs "How have you gotten in here? Security!"
I have been doing some exercises on Past Simple vs Present Perfect as that's the topic that gives me the most troubles... and I can't comprehend why this sentence is correct?
"How did you get in ...
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Can present perfect and present simple be used in the same sentence?
I occasionally say a sentence in which mixing the two tenses feels natural but in theory they express different relations to time so I am unsure whether this is correct.
One example sentence would be: ...
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What is the best "had or had expected " in this case
It turned out that what happened was different from what I expected in my mind.
I would like to know if my sentence is idiomatic and if we can write the following?
It turned out that what happened ...
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Simple past or past perfect?
"He is one of my favorite scientists. He died a few years ago. He had a nice sense of humor. One day, he threw a party for time travelers.
Shouldn't I use the past perfect somewhere here? Just ...
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"The job springboarded him into the profession at which he <would eventually excel> <eventually excelled>."— Why can we need the variant with "would"?
oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com:
(1) The job springboarded him into the profession at which he would eventually excel.
my subsidiary example:
(1a) The job springboards him into the profession at which ...
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What Is the Scope of the Past Perfect?
(Post copied, with minor alterations, from English Language & Usage on suggestion from a user.)
Recently, I’ve been editing a piece of writing written in first-person present tense. The narrator ...
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Fill in the blanks with Simple Past or Present Perfect Tense
It is Teachers' Day today, and so far, Sarah (receive) _____ three
presents. Her class (give) _____ her a plant and two of her students
(give) _____ her individual gifts.
I am sure that the first ...
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Had not needed vs did not need
I was asked to fill the blank below preserving the meaning of the sentence.
It was not necessary for him to take any warm clothes, so he traveled
light. He ____________ take any warm clothes ...
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Which sentence would you use in the given context?
I didn't call him because he could be busy.
I didn't call him because he could've been busy.
To mean "I didn't call him, thinking he could be busy," which sentence would you use? Also, what ...
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I hope you (have) found this useful
In an answer to this question, "I hope you enjoyed..." vs "I hope you have enjoyed...", the following is stated:
Both tenses refer to an event that occurred in the past (the ...
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What is the correct way to write this indirect speech? "...she told me she hadn't recognised/ didn't recognise me before I had faced/faced her"
oh I didn't recognise you before you faced me.
If I wanted to change it in indirect speech which would be acceptable?
"Yesterday I saw Claire and she told me she hadn't recognised/ didn't ...
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how to understand where it is better not to use Past Perfect?
I am confused, because I use Past Perfect even where it's not needed. Please, help me to figure out.
For instance, why we don't say:
We had had nothing in common with her, so we quickly lost contact....
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Why is the progressive form used in “since we weren't playing...”
Why did the author choose a continuous form?
Kim would always encourage me to wear baseball hats when we played because she said it made me look a heavy metal drummer, and since we weren't playing ...
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"while I was in Rome I ate pasta" or "I have eaten pasta"?
What's the correct sentence?
a) I have been to Rome and while I was there I ate pasta.
b) I have been to Rome and while I was there I have eaten pasta.
Thanks
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what did you do / have you done; in this context
My dad lent me his car but I did something stupid with; I scratched the car (not very much). After I came back home and because I did something bad to his car I was acting very kindly with him. He ...
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Present perfect or past simple to explain a project
When you explain your project to someone what do you choose between:
I did this simulation because..., I considered only ...
I have done this simulation because ..., I have considered only...
To me, ...
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"While + Past Simple" or "While + Past Continuous"
Question :
Last night, while they (sleep), a burglar broke into their house.
Answer A :
Last night, while they slept, a burglar broke into their house.
Or
Answer B :
Last night, while they was ...
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didn't work/ hasn't worked
I want to print something but the printer does not work
Should I say after some attempts : why it didn't work? or what it has not worked?
To me there are the same and have the same meaning but the ...
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will have said VS. would say
ex) I can't think why he was willing to say that it was my fault.
Now, for the purpose of making a sentence to have the same meaning of the example sentence, I would like to use modal auxiliary verb '...
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past perfect for an event which takes place after the past simple
I wanted to order something on the internet. I had asked for a new password when I realised that I had lost it. But I haven't yet received the new password.
first action the decision to order ...
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Can someone explain this conditional? (Past simple + past perfect)
I've just come across one conditional that I don't quite understand.
If what she said was true, Marilyn had almost certainly left town last night.
I understand that the first part of the sentence is ...
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Who's planning ahead? [Context in description]
Tyler went to buy groceries because he was running out of food. Robin went to buy groceries because he had run out of food.
Who is planning ahead? Why?
Answer was Tyler but I didn't understand this ...
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(Since + past simple) or (Since + present perfect)?
The explanation taken from my grammar book says
In a setence which includes a time clause with since, we generally
prefer a past simple verb in the time clause and a present perfect
verb in the main ...
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past progressive or past simple: worked or working
In the following sentences, could the past progressive be replaced by the past simple with no change of meaning? Is there a preferred form?
We were working / worked hard yesterday because the boss ...
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(Did / have done / had done) ~ ago
I'm a beginner in English and I'm curious about which one sounds more natural.
Emailed you
I emailed you about that a month ago.
I have emailed you about that a month ago.
I had emailed you about ...
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Which one is correct went or I've gone? [In the context below]
A: Shall I make us some dinner? It's already eight o'clock.
B: No,
thanks. I['ve gone] to the dentist this afternoon and my mouth hurts
too much to eat anything
It was a test and the correct answer ...
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"I wasn't listening to what the teacher was saying"? "I didn't listen to what the teacher was saying"?
We often avoid repeating the continuous form, do we? Like you say
What do you think you are doing?
instead of
What are you thinking you are doing?
How about the following sentences?
I wasn't ...
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Can we change places of the past simple and past continuous? Is it always idiomatic?
Can we change places of the past simple and past continuous? Is it always idiomatic?
I was walking home when I met Dan.
I met Dan when I was walking home.
When I met Dan, I was walking home.
When I ...
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I was enjoying the party but she wanted to go home
I was enjoying the party, but she wanted to go home.
It's known that "want" isn't used in Progressive tenses. So, we can't say how long she wanted to go home during the party. We don't know ...
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Simple Past and Past Progressive - both possible in cases with defined period of time - Thomson (1986) says it should be Simple Past
I believe that the past progressive tense can be used with defined periods of time. However, A Practical English Grammar (A.J. Thomson, 1986) says that the simple past tense is used for well-defined ...
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Simple past vs Perfect Past
A) He was arrested by police.
B) He had been arrested by police.
In newspaper reporter want to tell about past event that has already happened.
In above statements Reporter conveyed same meaning, ...
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Can simple past used as present perfect
I am confused about these two dialogues where Tom wants to borrow a big amount of money from Jim who is a very stingy person. Tom is talking to Steve about it. Tom, Jim, and Steve are very close ...
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