Past simple or past continuous?
1. (was/were) he swimming when it started to rain?
2. While they (were/was) walking in the park, they saw a squirrel.
3. My sister (was/were) playing the piano when I entered the room.
4. What (were/was) you doing yesterday at 9 o'clock?
5. We (were/was) watching a movie when the power went out.
1. The correct answer is "was". In this sentence, the verb "swimming" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The use of "when" suggests that the action was interrupted by another event (it started to rain). Therefore, we use past continuous for the first part of the sentence and past simple for the second part.
2. The correct answer is "were". In this sentence, the verb "walking" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The action is not interrupted by another event and continues until the observation (they saw a squirrel).
3. The correct answer is "was". In this sentence, the verb "playing" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The action is not interrupted by another event and continues until the statement (I entered the room).
4. The correct answer is "were". In this sentence, the question is asking about the actions performed at a specific moment in the past (yesterday at 9 o'clock). The verb "doing" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). Therefore, we use past continuous for the question.
5. The correct answer is "were". In this sentence, the verb "watching" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The action is not interrupted by another event and continues until the power went out.
Overall, the key to determining whether to use past simple or past continuous is to analyze the context and the duration of the actions. Past simple is used for completed actions in the past, while past continuous is used for ongoing actions or interrupted actions.
1. (was/were) he swimming when it started to rain?
2. While they (were/was) walking in the park, they saw a squirrel.
3. My sister (was/were) playing the piano when I entered the room.
4. What (were/was) you doing yesterday at 9 o'clock?
5. We (were/was) watching a movie when the power went out.
1. The correct answer is "was". In this sentence, the verb "swimming" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The use of "when" suggests that the action was interrupted by another event (it started to rain). Therefore, we use past continuous for the first part of the sentence and past simple for the second part.
2. The correct answer is "were". In this sentence, the verb "walking" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The action is not interrupted by another event and continues until the observation (they saw a squirrel).
3. The correct answer is "was". In this sentence, the verb "playing" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The action is not interrupted by another event and continues until the statement (I entered the room).
4. The correct answer is "were". In this sentence, the question is asking about the actions performed at a specific moment in the past (yesterday at 9 o'clock). The verb "doing" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). Therefore, we use past continuous for the question.
5. The correct answer is "were". In this sentence, the verb "watching" indicates an ongoing action in the past (past continuous). The action is not interrupted by another event and continues until the power went out.
Overall, the key to determining whether to use past simple or past continuous is to analyze the context and the duration of the actions. Past simple is used for completed actions in the past, while past continuous is used for ongoing actions or interrupted actions.