Impact-e English Training

Lesson Seventeen Grammar Explanation

The Past Simple of the verb to be.

The verb to be changes in Past Simple. You must learn the forms. Here are some example to help you.

Statements / short forms of statements:	Examples:	Negatives / short forms of negatives:	Examples:	Questions:	Examples:
I was.	I was on time this morning.	I was not / I wasn't.	I was not on time this morning. / I wasn't on time this morning.	Was I?	Was I on time this morning?
You were.	You were late yesterday.	You were not / You weren't.	You were not late yesterday. / You weren't late yesterday.	Were you?	Were you late yesterday?
He was.	He was early last Monday.	He was not / He wasn't.	He was not early last Monday. / He wasn't early last Monday.	Was he?	Was he early last Monday?
She was.	She was away last week.	She was not / She wasn't.	She was not away last week. / She wasn't away last week.	Was she?	Was she away last week?
It was.	It was on time in the past.	It was not / It wasn't.	It was not on time in the past. / It wasn't on time in the past.	Was it?	Was it on time in the past?
We were	We were there late.	We were not / We weren't.	We were not there late. / We weren't there late.	Were we?	Were we there late?
You were.	You were busy yesterday.	You were not / You weren't.	You were not busy yesterday. / You weren't busy yesterday.	Were you?	Were you busy yesterday?
They were.	They were on vacation last week.	They were not / They weren't.	They were not on vacation last week. / They weren't on vacation last week.	Were they?	Were they on vacation last week?