The Simple Past – Past Progressive tenses in English grammar are used to express actions that happened in the past. The Simple Past tense refers to an action that started and finished at a specific time in the past, while the Past Progressive tense is used to describe an ongoing action that took place in the past. Often, these two tenses work together to convey different parts of the past experience.
Exercise 1: Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the Simple Past tense
1. Last year, I *visited* (visit) my grandparents in their farm.
2. She *cooked* (cook) dinner for her friends last night.
3. He *played* (play) basketball at the court yesterday.
4. They *watched* (watch) a movie last weekend.
5. We *drank* (drink) coffee at the local café this morning.
6. I *studied* (study) for the test last week.
7. She *forgot* (forget) to bring her phone yesterday.
8. He *finished* (finish) all his chores in the afternoon.
9. They *waited* (wait) for the bus in the rain.
10. Emily *shopped* (shop) for groceries last Saturday.
11. It *rained* (rain) heavily last night.
12. Jack and Jill *went* (go) up the hill this morning.
13. My dog *barked* (bark) at the mailman yesterday.
14. I *lost* (lose) my keys in the park.
15. They *enjoyed* (enjoy) the circus show last week.
2. She *cooked* (cook) dinner for her friends last night.
3. He *played* (play) basketball at the court yesterday.
4. They *watched* (watch) a movie last weekend.
5. We *drank* (drink) coffee at the local café this morning.
6. I *studied* (study) for the test last week.
7. She *forgot* (forget) to bring her phone yesterday.
8. He *finished* (finish) all his chores in the afternoon.
9. They *waited* (wait) for the bus in the rain.
10. Emily *shopped* (shop) for groceries last Saturday.
11. It *rained* (rain) heavily last night.
12. Jack and Jill *went* (go) up the hill this morning.
13. My dog *barked* (bark) at the mailman yesterday.
14. I *lost* (lose) my keys in the park.
15. They *enjoyed* (enjoy) the circus show last week.
Exercise 2: Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the Past Progressive tense
1. Last night, while you *were sleeping* (sleep), I was studying.
2. While they *were watching* (watch) the game, their team scored.
3. She *was cooking* (cook) dinner while listening to the radio.
4. While we *were driving* (drive) back home, it started to rain.
5. The phone *was ringing* (ring) but nobody was there to answer it.
6. The kids *were playing* (play) in the garden when I arrived.
7. They *were waiting* (wait) for the bus when it started to pour.
8. My dog *was barking* (bark) at the mailman while I was away.
9. She *was shopping* (shop) for groceries when she bumped into a friend.
10. I *was studying* (study) when the power went out.
11. While they *were enjoying* (enjoy) the circus show, the clown came up.
12. The sun *was setting* (set) when we reached the beach.
13. While I *was driving* (drive), I listened to the radio.
14. They *were eating* (eat) lunch when the doorbell rang.
15. The children *were playing* (play) in the garden when the ball went over the fence.
2. While they *were watching* (watch) the game, their team scored.
3. She *was cooking* (cook) dinner while listening to the radio.
4. While we *were driving* (drive) back home, it started to rain.
5. The phone *was ringing* (ring) but nobody was there to answer it.
6. The kids *were playing* (play) in the garden when I arrived.
7. They *were waiting* (wait) for the bus when it started to pour.
8. My dog *was barking* (bark) at the mailman while I was away.
9. She *was shopping* (shop) for groceries when she bumped into a friend.
10. I *was studying* (study) when the power went out.
11. While they *were enjoying* (enjoy) the circus show, the clown came up.
12. The sun *was setting* (set) when we reached the beach.
13. While I *was driving* (drive), I listened to the radio.
14. They *were eating* (eat) lunch when the doorbell rang.
15. The children *were playing* (play) in the garden when the ball went over the fence.
