The past continuous tense (Past Progressive)

Утвердительная форма	Вопросительная форма			Отрицательная форма
I He } was working She It We You } were working They	Was Were	I {he} she it we { you} they	working working	I He was not working She (wasn't working) It We You} were not working They (weren't working)

Past Continuous образуется при помощи вспомогательного глагола to be в прошедшем времени (was, were) и причастия I смыслового глагола. В вопросительных предложениях вспомогательный глагол ставится перед подлежащим. В отрицательных предложениях частица not ставится после вспомогательного глагола.

Например: He was reading a book.

Was he reading a book?

He was not reading a book.

Past Continuous обозначает действие, протекавшее в точно указанный момент или период в прошлом ( процесс, действие в динамике). Этот момент может быть указан:

а) при помощи другого действия в прошлом ( чаще всего это действие выражено глаголом в Past Simple) или точного времени (at 5 o’clock yesterday)

Например:

When I returned, she was sweeping the floor. She was working in the garden at 6 o’clock yesterday evening.

Когда я вернулась, она подметала пол. Вчера в 6 часов вечера она работала в саду.

б) при помощи обстоятельства времени, такого как from 5 to 7 yesterday, the whole day yesterday, all day long (в таких предложениях может использоваться и Past Simple)

Например: They were working in the garden all day long.

They worked in the garden all day long.

Past Continuous может употребляться для выражения двух или более параллельных действий, происходивших одновременно

Например:

While Henry was reading a newspaper Helen was cooking dinner.

- В то время как Генри читал газету, Елена готовила ужин.

Exercises

Ex. 1. Answer the questions using the Past Continuous Tense.

1. What were you doing at 10 o’clock Saturday morning? 2. What were you doing at 11 o’clock yesterday evening? 3. What were you reading when your friend came to see you? 4. What were you listening to when I entered the room? 5. Who were you talking to when I met you in the corridor? 6. What were the students doing when the bell rang? 7. What were you doing when I called you? 8. Where were you going to when I met you yesterday? 9. What was your father looking through while you were talking on the phone? 10. Who were you waiting for while I was having a talk with the teacher? 11. What were you dreaming about at the English lesson when the teacher asked you? 12. What were you doing when it started raining? 13. What were you looking for when I opened the door? 14. What were your friends doing while you were laying the table? 15. What were you going to speak about when I interrupted you?

Ex. 2. Ask as many questions as you can.

1.They were dancing in the club at 10 p.m. yesterday. 2. My father was looking through the newspaper when I came home. 3. She was riding a bicycle when I saw her yesterday morning.

Ex. 3. Translate the sentences .

1. Вчера в это время я работал в офисе. 2. Вчера в 8 часов вечера я гулял в парке. 3. Пока я плавал, мой брат играл в теннис. 4. Мальчик вчера весь день катался на лыжах. 5. Когда он позвонил, мы завтракали. 6. Когда ребенок проснулся, мать разговаривала по телефону. 7. Вчера в это время я возвращался домой из Москвы. 8. В это время в прошлом году я пересекал Атлантический океан. 9. Она не выходила на улицу, потому что шел сильный дождь. 10. Пока учитель объяснял новое правило, я разговаривал с соседом. 11. Вчера моя младшая сестра играла на пианино весь вечер. 12. В 9 часов утра я все еще спал, а мой друг сидел в это время на уроке литературы. 13. Когда я пришел на вечеринку, Аня и Лена сидели на диване и разговаривали, Катя выбирала диск, Макс пил шампанское, Николай курил сигарету, Александр рассказывал анекдот.

Ex. 4 ⃰ . Here are four short articles from a newspaper. Read them all. Look

through the phrases given below. What article do they go in? Where

exactly do they go? (Two phrases go with each story).

1. “I was working in the garden at the time,” she explained.

2. … because they were wearing masks

3. “I know I was driving fast,” he explained to the court.

4. “I was trying to mend my wife’s hair-drier,” he said.

5. … when he was travelling at 120 miles an hour

6. … who was coming home from school at the time

7. … while he was mending a plug

8. The earth round the bottom of the tree was moving.

Motorist Driving at 120 mph (miles per hour)

Motorist Jeremy Page had to pay a fine of $ 330 at Durham Magistrates’ Court yesterday for speeding. Police stopped him on the motorway. The speed limit on motorways is 70 miles an hour. “This was because I was late for work”. The judge said that this was no excuse.

Tree Destroys House

Yesterday afternoon a 35 – year-old housewife narrowly escaped death when a tree blew over and fell onto her house, completely destroying it. “It was quite windy. I heard a strange noise coming from our tree. Suddenly the wind blew a little stronger, and I watched it crash onto the roof.” The Bowles family are staying with friends while their house is rebuilt.

Man Gets Shock

A man received a severe electric shock at his home in Solihull, Birmingham. Mr. Ian Taylor, 42, spent the night at the Birmingham Royal Hospital and then went home. “Suddenly there was a flash and an explosion. I don’t know how it happened.”

Post Office Robbery

Yesterday afternoon thieves stole $ 500 from a post office in Preston, Lancashire. Police do not have a good description of the two men, but they know that they escaped in a red Ford Cortina. This information came from an 11 -year-old boy, Charlie Carrack.