Past Simple vs. Past Continuous
We often use these two tenses together to tell a story that happened in the past. In these stories:
- the past continuous describes the background, it shows an action already in progress, it sets the scene,
- while the past simple describes a completed action that happened during it or interrupted it.
Past simple can also be used to tell a story on its own, but this story needs to be very chronological (e. g. I got up, I brushed my teeth, then I went to school. After school, I met up with my buddies and we...).
| Past Continuous | Past Simple | |
|---|---|---|
| Use | background, action in progress | completed action, interruption, sequence of events |
| Typical words | while | when |
| Examples |
We were sitting in the park... The sun was shining. |
...when the accident happened. He got up, brushed his teeth and left. |
Common patterns
-
Past continuous + when + past simple → an activity in progress being interrupted by other one
Pete was eating a hamburger when I met him. -
Past simple + while + past continuous
Somebody stole my bike while I wasn't looking. -
While + two past continuous actions → two longer activities happening simultaneously
While I was cooking, my children were playing.
Remember: state verbs
State verbs (know, want, believe, etc.) are normally not used in the continuous.
- Linda didn't know what to do. (not
wasn't knowing) - When he was a child, he wanted to become a doctor.
