Basic – Page 7 – Fly High English

When do we use the past simple?

It’s a very common tense and it’s not so difficult to understand. Past simple forms can be regular (with ‘ed’ at the end) or irregular. Be careful with the forms of irregular verbs in the past simple and check for their forms.

We use the past simple most often with finished actions in the past. They are ‘finished’ in the sense that they are completed and don’t have a connection to the present.

eg I arrived at the airport at 1:45pm.

eg We landed ten minutes late yesterday afternoon.

We can use the past simple to talk about our experiences, things we did, saw or read about etc…

Have a look at the diagram below to learn about uses of the past simple.

Using the present simple

The present simple is one of the most commons verb tenses that we use but it’s sometimes confused with other tenses that are also related to the present.

Basic use: To talk about states, repeated actions

eg I have 5,000 flight hours of experience. (state – not an action)

eg I usually go to the airport every week. (repeated actions)

Advanced use: To talk about a future event which is scheduled to start at a specific time.

eg I have a flight at 3:15pm tomorrow. (it’s scheduled by the airline)

eg The train leaves at 9:45pm. (it’s scheduled by the train company)

Tip: Be sure you know how to conjugate the present simple correctly in the positive, negative and question forms.

Look at the diagram below of when we use the present simple, and also have a look at the advanced use of the present simple. Did you know it’s possible to use it to talk about the future?

Tag: Basic

Structure: ‘Past simple’

When do we use the past simple?

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Structure: ‘Use of the present simple’

Using the present simple

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When do we use the past simple?

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Using the present simple

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