To be: past simple

Notes to remember about the past simple of “to be”

To be is one of the irregular verbs that change its form when put in the past tense. Its past simple form is mainly used to describe a past state of being such as feelings, appearance, state of mind, social position, etc. To better understand the past simple of to be, look at the two tables below. They provide you with the most important things you need to know, especially form, rule, use, examples, and the time expressions associated with it.

TenseFormation RuleSignal WordsUse/Function
Past Simple of ”to be”Subject+was/were-last+time expression (week/month/year/Friday ….etc.)
-Yesterday
-…………… ago
Past situations
Affirmative/PositiveNegativeInterrogative
I/He/She/It was I/He/She/It was not Was I/he/she
We/You/They wereWe/You/They were not Were/we/you/they

Remark

  • Was not = wasn’t
  • were not = weren’t

Practice

Exercise 1

Put the present forms of to be in the following sentences in the past simple

Present Simple Past Simple
1. Where is Jack today?
2. What day is today?
3. Where are they today?
4. I am at home this afternoon.
5. We aren’t in school now.
6. what is that in your hand?
7. when is she usually at home?
8. He isn’t a teacher.
9. The weather isn’t very nice.
10. why are you so worried?
1. …………………………………………………………………
2. ………………………………………………………………..
3. ………………………………………………………………….
4. ………………………………………………………………….
5. …………………………………………………………………….
6. ……………………………………………………………………..
7. ……………………………………………………………………..
8. …………………………………………………………………….
9. ………………………………………………………………………
10. ……………………………………………………………………..

Exercise 2

Put the following sentences in the negative form

  1. Mum was at home this morning.
  2. Paul and Mary were in the shop.
  3. His friends were very happy yesterday afternoon.
  4. I was late for the cinema.
  5. We were at home watching a film on TV.
  6. Jill was at the zoo last Sunday.
  7. I was at school this morning.     
  8. John and I were in a Chinese restaurant last night.

Exercise 3

Fill the blanks with was or were

  1. I ___________ here two years ago.
  2. They ___________ very rude.
  3. He ___________ always on time.
  4. Maria ___________ his classmate in second grade.
  5. The man and the woman ___________ in Central Park.
  6. You ___________ right and I ___________ wrong.
  7. The party ___________ fantastic.
  8. The dog ___________ happy.
  9. I ___________ glad to help you with your homework.
  10. You ___________ in the concert.
  11. ___________ they here or ___________ she there?
  12. Where ___________ you?
  13. Our friends ___________ there, but where ___________ Bob?
  14. The weather ___________ snowy and chilly today.
  15. The sofa and the chair ___________ old.
  16. Billie Jean King ___________ number one for quite a long time.
  17. My cat ___________ in the corner a minute ago.
  18. My parents ___________ on vacation last week in Mexico.
  19. How ___________ the movie last night?
  20. My father ___________ a film star.

Exercise 4

Give short answers of these questions, as in the examples

  1. Were you at home last night?
  • Yes, I was
  • No, I wasn´t
  1. Was it hot yesterday?
  2. Were your friends at home last Monday?
  3. Was your father at work this morning?
  4. Were you in class yesterday morning?
  5. Was John at home last week?
  6. Were they at the cinema yesterday?
  7. Were your parents at the station at nine o´clock?
  8. Was he in Warsaw yesterday?
  9. Were you nice to your cousins?

Exercise 5

Put the following sentences in the interrogative form

  1. I was very good in yesterday’s performance.    
  2.  Karen was with me at the party.   
  3. You were ill last night.     
  4. They were at school this morning.     
  5. He was 22 years old.  
  6. There were a lot of people at the meeting.      
  7. There was a lot of milk in the fridge.      
  8. I was sure.
  9. Mary was in the street this morning.
  10.  My aunt was in hospital yesterday morning

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