Past Tense: The 4 Past Tenses With Examples

The past tenses let you talk about what already happened. There are four, and the difference between them is about whether the action was finished, in progress, or came before another past event.

Past simple

The workhorse of storytelling. Use it for completed actions with a clear past time. Watch out for irregular verbs (go went, buy bought, take took).

• I visited my parents last week.
• She went to college in Pune.

Past continuous

Use it for an action that was in progress when something else happened. It often pairs with the past simple.

• I was cooking when the phone rang.
• They were waiting at the station.

Past perfect

Use it to show that one past action happened before another. It is the past of the past.

• The train had left before I reached the station.
• She had finished lunch when I called.

Past perfect continuous

Use it for how long something had been going on before a past point.

• I had been waiting for an hour when the bus arrived.

See how the past connects to now in the full tenses guide, or learn the future tense next.

The four past tenses with examples: past simple, continuous, perfect and perfect continuous, and when to use each.