We make the past continuous with the past tense of the verb “to be” and by adding -ing to the main verb.
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was / were + verb -ing He was waiting for the train. You were spending money. |
We use the past continuous to talk about the past:
- To show that something continued for some time:
Everyone was dancing.
- For something that was happening again and again:
They were meeting secretly after work.
- With verbs which show change or growth:
Her German was improving.
We usually use the past continuous to express something which continued before and after another action. The other action is usually expressed using the past simple:
While I was watching television the telephone rang.
This is how we make negative sentences and questions:
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was / were + not + verb -ing He was not waiting for the train. (Long form) He wasn't waiting for the train. (Short form) |
|
was / were + subject + verb -ing Was he waiting for the train? |