THE PAST CONTINUOUS

Form:

It is formed with was / were + the present participle (verb + ing)

Affirmative:

I / He / She / It was working.
You / We / They were working.

Negative:

I / He / She / It wasn’t working.
You / We / They weren’t working.

Questions:

Was I / he / she / it working?
Were you / we / they working?

Short answers:

Yes, I / he / she / it was.
Yes, you / we / they were.
No, I / he / she / it wasn’t.
No, you / we / they weren’t.

Use:

1) To talk about an action in progress in the past.

When I arrived home, Sam was watching TV.

A: What were you doing at 8o’clock?
B: I was cooking.

While Mary was listening to music, Jane was reading a book.

2) We use it in descriptions.

I was sitting near the lake. The sun was shinning and the birds were singing. Suddenly I heard a terrible noise.

Time Expressions:

When / while.

I was reading the newspaper while my sons were doing their homework.
She was having breakfast when the telephone rang.
He broke his leg while he was playing football.Free Excercises:

http://www.agendaweb.org/verb/past_progressive.html


http://perso.wanadoo.es/autoenglish/gr.pascon.i.htm