Past continuous

The past continuous describes an action that was in progress at some point in the past — already going on, not just starting or finishing. Think of it as catching an action mid-flow: At nine o'clock she was studying. They were sleeping when I arrived.

The form is simple: was or were + the -ing form of the main verb.

Quick form: subject + was / were + verb**-ing** → I was working. They were talking.

How to form the past continuous

The helper verb is always was or were — the same choice as in Past simple: was / were. Then add the -ing form of the main verb.

The was / were rule is the same as always: I, he, she, it → was; you, we, they → were. This also applies to noun subjects — ✅ The baby was sleeping, ✅ The children were sleeping.

Spelling the -ing form

These are the same rules you use for the present continuous:

An action in progress at a past time

Use the past continuous to say what was happening at a particular moment in the past. The time expression points to a moment inside the action:

• At ten o'clock last night, I was watching TV.
• This time yesterday, we were flying over the ocean.
• When you called, she was having a shower.

Interrupted actions: past continuous + when + past simple

This is one of the most common uses. A longer action (past continuous) was in progress when a shorter event (past simple) happened. The shorter event may or may not stop the longer one — in I was cooking when the phone rang, the cooking might continue:

• I was cooking dinner when the phone rang.
• She was walking home when it started to rain.
• We were watching the match when the power went out.

The past continuous paints the background; the past simple marks the event. The clauses can swap — when the when-clause comes first, we usually add a comma:

• When the phone rang, I was cooking dinner.

Two actions happening at the same time

Use the past continuous in both clauses to show two actions running in parallel:

• While she was studying, he was cooking.
• They were talking while I was trying to sleep.

When and while

These two words often follow useful patterns:

• ✅ While I was sleeping, the cat came in. (while + long background action)
• ✅ I was sleeping when the cat came in. (when + the interrupting event)
• ✅ When she arrived, we were eating dinner. (when before the past simple interruption is fine too)

A useful shortcut: while signals a duration, so it naturally fits the past continuous; when often introduces the shorter past-simple event. In practice, though, both words appear before past-continuous clauses in everyday speech — When I was cooking, the phone rang is perfectly natural.

Negatives

Add not after was / were. Contracted forms are very common in everyday English:

• I wasn't listening. (was not)
• They weren't expecting you. (were not)
• It wasn't raining when I left.

Questions

Put was / were before the subject to form a question:

• Was she sleeping?
• Were they waiting for us?
• What were you doing last night?
• Who was he talking to?

Short answers repeat was or were:

• "Were you working?" — "Yes, I was." / "No, I wasn't."

Verbs that usually don't take the continuous

Some verbs describe states rather than actions — know, believe, love, want, understand. With their state meanings, they usually use the past simple, not the continuous:

• ❌ I was knowing the answer. → ✅ I knew the answer.
• ❌ She was wanting to leave. → ✅ She wanted to leave.

Some of these verbs can appear in the continuous with a different, more active meaning (I was seeing a doctor, She was thinking about it), but that is a detail for later.

Common mistakes

• ❌ I was cook dinner. → ✅ I was cooking dinner. (need the -ing form)
• ❌ I cooking when you called. → ✅ I was cooking when you called. (need was / were)
• ❌ What was you doing? → ✅ What were you doing? (you always takes were)
• ❌ While she reading, I was writing. → ✅ While she was reading, I was writing. (need was / were before the -ing form)
• ❌ I was knowing the answer. → ✅ I knew the answer. (state verbs don't take -ing)

Quick check

Use the past continuous or past simple:

1. At midnight, they ____ (sleep).
2. I ____ (have) a shower when you ____ (knock).
3. While she ____ (read), he ____ (cook) dinner.
4. ____ you ____ (listen) when the teacher explained it?

Key takeaways

• The past continuous = was / were + verb-ing — it describes an action in progress in the past.
• Use it for: an action at a past moment; a background action interrupted by a past-simple event; two simultaneous past actions.
• while fits naturally before a past continuous clause; when often introduces the shorter past-simple event.
• Negatives: wasn't / weren't + -ing. Questions: Was / Were + subject + -ing?
• State verbs (know, want, love…) usually use the past simple in their state meanings, not the continuous.