We use simple past tense to talk about an action that happened in the past. We also use it to tell a story.
The time of signals that indicate such happenings are yesterday, this morning, just now, a few minutes ago, . . . ago (long, long time ago), and last . . .(last Monday, last week, etc).
Pattern:
~ Using be : S + was/were + V1 + Complement
~ Using verbs : S + Vpast + Complement
The function of the simple past tense:
1. To express that an action started and finished at the specific time in the past.
2. To describe a habit which stopped in the past. To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we often add expressions such as : always, often, usually, never, when, etc.
3. To describe past fact6 or generalizations which are no longer true. Example: Grandpa didn’t like coffee before.
Kind of Past Tense:
~ Past Progressive Tense / Past Continous Tense.
~ Past Perfect Tense.
~ Past Perfect Progressive Tense.
Example of Simple Past Tense:
(+) The diligent boy studied last night.
(-) The diligent boy did not study last night.
(?) Did the diligent boy study last night.
