4. Talking about the past

To use past tense because these actions already occurred. Some words change when speaking in the past tense.  Past:Went,  Present:Go and  Future:Going to go

 

         

Here are some examples:

"I went to the airport yesterday."

"I met Bob last week."

"I was an hour late for my meeting."

"I went to the bus stop, but I was 30 seconds late. A person on the street told me the bus just went by."

"I completed that task this morning."

 

Many times a word with the letter 'd' or 'ed' at the end changes the word to past tense. Here are some examples:

 "I was being polite so I opened the door for him."

"I stapled the papers together to keep them organized."

"The paper ripped on the bottom, so I taped them together."

"I switched the presents around because I found out Jane doesn't like red lipstick."

"I was very interested in the topic so I paid close attention."

 

When asking questions about the past, you can ask questions like:

"What time did you get home last night?"

"What have you been up to?"

"What did you do last weekend?"

"What did you do last night?"

"How was the party?"

"How was the airplane ride?"

"How was your date with Jackie?"

"How was the traffic going to the airport?"

"How did your presentation go?"

"How did you enjoy the movie?"

"How come you didn't come to class yesterday?"

"Why didn't you come to my party last night?"

"Did you get a chance to go to that new restaurant down the street?"

"Didn't you finish finals week?"

 

Here are some ways you can answer these types of questions.

"How did you enjoy the movie?"

"It was a long movie, but overall, the movie was great."

"I really didn't like the movie. It was slow and boring."

"I enjoyed the movie so much that I saw it again."

 

"What time did you get home last night?"

"I got home at two in the morning."

"I didn't make it home until eleven last night."

"I made it home at midnight."

 

"How was your date with Jackie?"

"The date went so well. We had dinner at a seafood restaurant. And then we saw a movie together."

"I don't think it went too well. We hardly had anything to talk about. I really thought Jackie was bored to death."

"The date was alright. She called me this morning to go out again, but I haven't responded yet."

 

"What have you been up to?"

"I just graduated from school so I'm happy that I'm done."

"I met Jackie yesterday and we spent the evening together in a nice restaurant."

"The only thing I have done in the last three months is computer games."

 

"What did you do last weekend?"

"Last weekend, I visited my parents."

"I went golfing on Saturday. I shot a great score."

"I stayed home and watched TV all weekend long."

 

"How come you didn't come to class yesterday?"

"I was very sick yesterday."

"I missed the bus and by the time I got to campus, class was already over."

"I slept in because I didn't hear the alarm ring."

 

"How did your presentation go?"

"It went ok. A few of the people asked some tough questions, but overall it was good."

"I messed up so bad. I brought the wrong folder from my office so I didn't have any notes."

"It was the best presentation of the day. My boss told me I was organized, focused, and spoke clearly."

 

Example Conversation

Person A: "Why didn't you come to my party last night?"

Person B: "I'm sorry I couldn't make it. I had to go visit my grandmother at the hospital."

Person A: "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Is she doing ok?"

Person B: "They just completed a small operation and the doctors said she should recover."

 

Person A: "Did you get a chance to go to that new restaurant down the street?"

Person B: "Yeah. I ordered the special, but the server screwed up my order."

Person A: "That sucks. So what ended up happening?"

Person B: "They finally got my steak out, but it was overcooked. It was a terrible experience."

 

Person A: "What did you do last weekend?"

Person B: "I went on a date with Sammy."

Person A: "Really? How was it?"

Person B: "I couldn't ask for a better night. We talked all throughout our two hour dinner, and then we sat by the river and cuddled in the night."

 

Person A: "Didn't you finish finals week?"

Person B: "Don't remind me. I think I failed most of the exams."

Person A: "Why did you do so terrible?"

Person B: "My mind just went blank. I think I overloaded my brain. I just couldn't concentrate during the exams."

 

A: "What did you do last night?"

B: "I met some friends and we had some drinks at a bar."

A: "Did you drink a lot?"

B: "I got so drunk that I don't remember how I got home."

A: "Why did you drink so much?"

B: "I was so depressed. I just wanted to forget about everything."

 

A: "How was the airplane ride?"

B: "It was a twelve hour flight. It was so boring. I tried to sleep but it was too uncomfortable on the plane."

A: "How about the movies they play on international flights?"

B: "I saw both movies they played. I was just unlucky."

A: "Did you take a book with you?"

B: "I accidentally packed it with my luggage that I checked in."

 

A: "What did you do last weekend?"

B: "I went to a party."

A: "How was the party?"

B: "It was way too crowded and the food was gone before I got there."

A: "What time did you get home?"

B: "It was pretty boring so I left at ten and got home before eleven."