PAST SIMPLE

This is the ‘normal’ story-telling tense. Use it unless there is a special reason for using another past tense.

Paul picked up the keys and left the room.

PAST CONTINUOUS

This sets the scene for a story, describing an action in progress.

When I arrived home, Tina was sitting in the chair, happily watching TV.

We were all looking forward to what the day ahead might hold.

This also describes a long, background action which is ‘interrupted’ by a shorter action in the past simple.

Everybody was waiting for me to start. I was feeling very nervous. Then, suddenly, there was a loud bang.

PAST PERFECT

The ‘double past’ is a way of going back further when you’re already using the past simple. It says clearly that something had already happened before the past event in the story.

Ben was surprised to find that everyone had already left.

Jane thought she had turned all the lights off but she was wrong.

There was a large swelling where he'd been bitten.

Nobody had warned me of the dangers I was now facing.

PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

This is used to describe actions or situations which had been continuing for a longer time, up to a certain moment in the past. The past perfect continuous often explains the main action or gives relevant background.

The ground was very wet because it had been raining for two days.

I had been working hard all day and I was tired.

I'd been hearing noises off to the left of the path so I decided to investigate.

By the time we got to Rio we had been travelling for 16 hours.

FUTURE IN THE PAST

This describes something that was in the future at the time of writing. We use the past tenses of future forms to say what plans, intentions or predictions we had at a point in the past.

I knew he was going to ask a tricky question.

Last summer I was going to visit my sister but I went to Italy instead.

She didn’t stop to talk to me because she was meeting her boyfriend in five minutes.

I was leaving for Mexico that morning and I was worried about the long flight.

I hoped the weather would improve before the weekend.

One day I would find out the truth, although I didn't know it yet.

I knew I might be staying there for a while so I made myself comfortable.

Grace was about to get on the plane when she got an urgent text message.