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Simple Past VS PST Perfect

The document discusses the differences between using the simple past and past perfect tenses. It provides examples of each tense and discusses their uses based on whether an event is being described as occurring at a specific time in the past or as occurring before another point in the past.

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ashley.monsivais
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50 views5 pages

Simple Past VS PST Perfect

The document discusses the differences between using the simple past and past perfect tenses. It provides examples of each tense and discusses their uses based on whether an event is being described as occurring at a specific time in the past or as occurring before another point in the past.

Uploaded by

ashley.monsivais
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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SIMPLE PAST VS PAST PERFECT

Simple Past Past Perfect Simple

2nd column of irregular verbs had + 3rd column of irregular verbs

Example: Example:
I spoke I had spoken

regular verbs: infinitive + ed regular verbs: form of have + infinitive + ed

Example: Example:
I worked I had worked

Exceptions

Exceptions when adding ed:

▪ when the final letter is e, only add d


Example:
love - loved
▪ after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled
Example:
admit - admitted
▪ final l is always doubled in British English (not in American English)
Example:
travel - travelled
▪ after a consonant, final y becomes i (but: not after a vowel)
Example:
worry - worried
but: play - played

See also explanations on Simple Past and Past Perfect Simple

Use
We use Simple Past if we give past events in the order in which they occured.
However, when we look back from a certain time in the past to tell what had
happened before, we use Past Perfect.
SIMPLE PAST VS PAST PERFECT
Normal order in the past or looking back to an event before a certain time in
the past?

Do you just want to tell what happened sometime in the past or do you want to
tell what had happened before/up to a certain time in the past?

Simple Past Past Perfect Simple

sometime in the past before/up to a certain time in the past

Example: Example:
Jane got up at seven. She opened her birthday presents Before her sixth birthday, Jane
and then the whole family went to the zoo. had never been to the zoo.

Signal Words

Simple Past Past Perfect Simple

▪ first ▪ already
▪ then ▪ up to then
▪ specific time ▪ before that day
▪ after*
▪ no specific time

*Note: "After" is only used as a signal word for Past Perfect if it is followed by a
subject + verb, meaning that one action had been completed before another
action began (the new action is in Simple Past).

Example:

After the family had had breakfast, they went to the zoo.

However, if "after" is followed by object + subject + verb, the verb belongs to the
new action and is therefore in Simple Past.

Example:
After her visit to the zoo, Jane was exhausted.
SIMPLE PAST VS PAST PERFECT
More exceptions with signal words

When

Depending on the situation, "when" can be used with Simple Past or Past Perfect.
Compare the following examples:

Example:
When Jane saw the elephants, she was amazed. (at the same time)
When Jane had seen the elephants, she wanted to see the giraffes. (second action
happened after the first action had been completed)
When Jane went to see the elephants, she had already seen the lions. (second action
had been completed when the first action took place)

Test your knowledge on Simple Past and Past Perfect Simple. After submitting
your answers, you will see how well you have done in the test.

Form

Write down the correct form (pronoun + verb).

Simple Past Past Perfect

They w orked They had w orked


they / work

I saw I had seen


I / see

She tidied She had tidied


she / tidy

He ran He had run


he / run

You bought You had bought


you / buy
SIMPLE PAST VS PAST PERFECT
Use

When do we use which tense?

1. If we give past events in the order in which they occured, we use … __Simple
past___________________________________________________________________________
2. If from a certain time in the past we look back to what had happened before,
we use … ___Past perfect ______________________________________________________________

Choosing the correct form

Choose the correct tense (simple past or past perfect simple).

1. When I __arrived___________ (arrive) to school, the lesson __had started


already________________ (already/start).
2. I __went______________ (go) to New York last month. I __had never been
______________ (never/ be) to the USA before.
3. Bob ___didn’t let________________ (not/let) us into his room because he __hadn’t
cleaned______________ (not/clean) for weeks.
4. I ____felt____________ (feel) very hungry because I __hadn’t eaten
________________(not/eat) anything yet.
5. As Vanessa __had seen_____________ (see) the film before,
she ___wanted_______________ (want) to go to the cinema with us.

Filling in the correct form

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or past perfect simple).

1. William (live) ___had lived______________ in Boston for six years before


he (move) __moved____________ to New York.
2. The blue car (cross) __had crossed____________ the street after the
lights (turn) _turned_________________ red.
3. When James (try) _tried____________ to ring us, we (leave / already) had already
left_____________ the house.
4. After Joanna (finish) __had finished______________ her presentation,
we (ask) __asked______________ our questions.
5. On her first day at the driving school, we (be) were_____________ very nervous
because we (drive / not) _hadn’t driven________________ a car before.
SIMPLE PAST VS PAST PERFECT
Text

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or pas perfect simple).

1. It (be) __was____________________ a cold and rainy Sunday, so


I (decide) __decided____________ to finish the essay that I (start) had
started________________ writing a few days before.
2. I (switch) ___switched_______________ on the computer and (open) __opened
______________ the document.
3. Then I (begin) ___began________________ looking for my notes that I (handwrite)
handwrote ____________ on a sheet of paper.
4. But the notes (be) _wasn’t____________________ not on my desk and I (can /
not) ____couldn’t_______________ remember where I (put) _had
put_____________________ them.
5. I (turn) __turned___________________ the whole house upside down.
6. And where (find / I) _did I find _______________________ my notes?
7. I (leave) __had left______________ them in the sitting room, under a huge staple of
papers and magazines.
8. Now that I (find) ___found_______________ my notes,
I (want) _wanted________________ to continue writing my essay.
9. First I (know / not) ____didn’t know_______________ what to write but then
I (have) _had _______________ lots of ideas.
10. I (complete / almost) _ had almost completed_________________ my essay when
my computer suddenly (crash) _crashed________________ and
I (notice) __noticed________________ that I (forget) _had forgotten______________ to
save the document.
11. After I (reboot) rebooted_________________ my computer,
I (see) _saw________________ that at least 5 of the pages I (type) __had typed
was_______________________ (be) ________________ missing.
12. So I (have) __had ______________ to start all over again.

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