Lessons Grammar
⏰

Past Simple Tense

Grammar Elementary +20 XP ~1 min

Master the past simple tense to talk about completed actions and events.

📖 Lesson

The Past Simple

Use past simple for actions completed in the past.

Regular Verbs

Add -ed to the base verb:
- work → worked
- play → played
- study → studied

Irregular Verbs (must memorize!)

Base Past
go went
see saw
have had
make made
come came

Forming Sentences

Positive: Subject + past verb
- I visited Paris last year.

Negative: Subject + didn't + base verb
- She didn't come to the party.

Question: Did + subject + base verb?
- Did you enjoy the film?

Time Expressions

  • yesterday, last night, last week, last year
  • ago (2 days ago, a year ago)
  • in 2020, in the 1990s
Follow Along reads paragraph by paragraph with highlighting. Hover underlined words for quick definitions.

🃏 Key Vocabulary — tap to flip

5 words
past simple
/pɑːst ˈsɪmpl/
Elementary
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Definition
The verb tense used to talk about actions that finished in the past
"I walked to school yesterday. That's past simple."
Tap to flip back
yesterday
/ˈjestərdeɪ/
Elementary
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Definition
The day before today
"I finished my homework yesterday."
Tap to flip back
last week
/lɑːst wiːk/
Elementary
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Definition
The seven days before this week
"She visited her grandmother last week."
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ago
/əˈɡoʊ/
Elementary
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Definition
A time in the past; used to show how far back something happened
"I ate lunch two hours ago."
Tap to flip back
did
/dɪd/
Elementary
Tap to see definition →
Definition
Past tense of 'do'; used in questions and negatives
"Did you watch the movie? I did not see it."
Tap to flip back

✏️ Fill in the Blank

Type the missing word to complete each sentence.

I walked to school yesterday. That's ___.
I finished my homework ___.
She visited her grandmother ___.
I ate lunch two hours ___.
___ you watch the movie? I ___ not see it.

🧠 Practice Quizzes

Past Simple Challenge
5 questions · 10 min · +35 XP
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