Past Continuous

Past Continuous (positive, negative, questions)

+	He was studying.	They were dancing at the party.
-	He wasn’t studying.	They weren’t dancing at the party.
yes/no?	Was he studying?	Were they dancing at the party?
wh?	What was he studying?	Where were they dancing?

1.1 Use Past Continuous to talk about actions in progress at a specific time in the past.

Examples

I was watching TV at 7 pm last night.

They are playing soccer at the moment.

1.2 Use Past Simple for completed actions and Past Continuous for ongoing actions or background activities in the past.

Examples

She was cooking dinner when the power went out.

I was reading a book when he called.

1.3 Use «while» to show two actions happening simultaneously in the past. Use Past Continuous for the longer or ongoing action and Past Simple for the shorter, interrupting action.

Examples

I was reading a book while she cooked dinner.

The phone rang while I was working.

She was studying while her brother was watching TV.

1.4 Use Past Continuous to describe temporary actions, situations, or states in progress at a specific time in the past.

Examples

I was living in Rome at the time.

I was studying in Germany during the early 1990s.

1.5 Use Past Continuous to talk about plans or intentions that were in progress in the past, regardless of whether they were completed or not.

Examples

She wasn’t intending to talk about it, but she did.

We were hoping to visit the museum, but it was closed.