Narrative tenses (1)

Past tenses

1.     Past simple

We use the past simple

a)     to talk about single past actions or a clear sequence of past actions.

Remember:

We don´t have to repeat the subject if it doesn´t change.

She opened the envelope, (she) took out the letter and smiled.

b)    to talk about past states.

I taught in that school for thirteen years.

2.     Past continuous

We use the past continuous

a)     to describe past actions which were in progress at a given time or period in the past.

b)    at the beginning of a narrative we use the past continuous to set the scene:

The lawyers were looking through their papers preparing their arguments for the trial to come. The defendant´s wife was anxiously twisting a handkerchief between her fingers.

c)     to show an action was in progress when another action took place:

We were watching TV when we heard a loud bang from the street below.

d)    to show that different actions were in progress at the same time:

While we were lying on the beach someone was going through our things in the hotel room.

Remember:

We can often leave out was/were and use the present participle on its own. As in the past simple, we don´t have to repeat the subject if it doesn´t change:

Shoppers were crowding round the counter, (they were) snatching bargains from under each other´s noses.

3.     Past perfect

We use the past perfect

a)     to show that an action happened earlier than a later action:

By the time we got there, the film had already started.

Remember:

The past perfect is also used in the condition clause of the third conditional, and to express past regrets with wish.

4.     Past perfect continuous:

We use the past perfect continuous:

a)     to show that an action had started and was still in progress when another action took place:

We had been studying there for ages when the night bus finally turned up.

b)    to describe repeated actions up to a point in the past:

I had been ringing her all morning but I couldn´t get a reply.