Welcome to the Past Progressive. Be sure to watch the introductory grammar video on the left before continuing to read this section.

The Past Progressive, also known as the Past Continuous, is one of the past tenses used to express a continual action in the past. It differs from the past simple tense in that it happened more than once or on a regular basis. It is formed by adding the past simple form of the verb "to be" along with the -ing form of the main verb:

I was speaking
you were speaking
he/she/it was speaking
we were speaking
they were speaking

The verb "to be" is irregular in the past. Any differences in spelling of the "-ing" form are the same in both present and past.

To form the past progressive in the negative, simple use the past negative form of "to be" followed by "not" plus the "-ing" form (Ex: I wasn't running yesterday).

To form questions in the past progressive, simply reverse the subject and helping verb "to be" (Ex: Were you skating last night?).


Try the games below to practice what you learned:

Past Prog Word Order
Past Simp. vs Past Prog. Matching
Identify the tense

Try the quiz below to test your skills.

Past Simple vs Past Prog Mult choice
Past Prog Written Quiz
Past Prog Mult Choice

Past Progressive Tips

The past progressive is used to express a continual action in the past.

It differs from the past simple in that it happened more than once or on a regular basis.

It is formed by adding the past tense of "to be" along with the -ing form.

Refer to the present progressive tips to understand the spelling rules associated with the -ing form.

The -ing form on its own can sometimes function as a noun or adjective and is called the gerund.