Past Progressive

Past Progressive 

The past progressive puts emphasis on the course of an action in the past.

Form

PositiveNegativeQuestion
I / he / she / itI was speaking.I was not speaking.Was I speaking?
you / we / theyYou were speaking.You were not speaking.Were you speaking?

Exceptions in Spelling

Exceptions in spelling when adding ingExample
final e is dropped (but: ee is not changed)come – coming
(but: agree – agreeing)
after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubledsit – sitting
l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled (in British English)travel – travelling
final ie becomes ylie – lying

Use of Past Progressive

  • puts emphasis on the course of an action in the past
    Example: He was playing football.
  • two actions happening at the same time (in the past)
    Example: While she was preparing dinner, he was washing the dishes.
  • action going on at a certain time in the past
    Example: When I was having breakfast, the phone suddenly rang.

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