Beginner · Grammar
Past Simple: talk about completed actions
Describe finished past events, learn regular and irregular verbs, and make past-tense questions correctly.
What you will learn
Use the past simple to describe an action, event or state that finished in the past. A time phrase such as yesterday, last week or in 2024 can make the past time clear, but it is not required if the context already tells us when it happened.
The lesson
1. Regular verbs commonly take -ed
Many verbs form the past simple by adding -ed: work becomes worked and visit becomes visited. Spelling can change: study becomes studied. When speaking, the ending has different sounds, so listening and reading examples are useful.
Pattern: Regular verb: base form + -ed (with spelling changes where needed)
2. Learn common irregular forms
Some frequent verbs have a special past form: go → went, see → saw, buy → bought, and have → had. These forms are learned individually; do not add -ed to them.
Pattern: go → went · see → saw · buy → bought
3. Use did for questions and negatives
In most past-simple questions, start with did and use the base form of the main verb. In negatives, use did not (didn't) plus the base form: “Did you go?” and “We didn't go.” Avoid “Did you went?”
Pattern: Did + subject + base verb? · Subject + didn't + base verb
Examples with language support
Read the English sentence first, then compare its meaning in the language you know best. These translations aim to communicate the sentence naturally rather than repeat English word order.
Example 1
I visited my friend yesterday.
- Urdu
- میں کل اپنے دوست سے ملنے گیا۔
- Hindi
- मैं कल अपने दोस्त से मिलने गया।
- Arabic
- زرت صديقي أمس.
- Bengali
- আমি গতকাল আমার বন্ধুর সঙ্গে দেখা করেছি।
Why it works: Visited is the past form of the regular verb visit.
Example 2
He went home early.
- Urdu
- وہ جلدی گھر گیا۔
- Hindi
- वह जल्दी घर गया।
- Arabic
- ذهب إلى المنزل مبكرًا.
- Bengali
- সে তাড়াতাড়ি বাড়ি গেল।
Why it works: Went is the irregular past form of go.
Example 3
Did you see the sign?
- Urdu
- کیا آپ نے نشان دیکھا؟
- Hindi
- क्या आपने संकेत देखा?
- Arabic
- هل رأيت اللافتة؟
- Bengali
- আপনি কি সাইনটি দেখেছেন?
Why it works: Did is followed by see, not saw.
Example 4
We did not watch television last night.
- Urdu
- ہم نے گزشتہ رات ٹیلی ویژن نہیں دیکھا۔
- Hindi
- हमने कल रात टेलीविज़न नहीं देखा।
- Arabic
- لم نشاهد التلفاز الليلة الماضية.
- Bengali
- আমরা গত রাতে টেলিভিশন দেখিনি।
Why it works: Did not carries the past tense, so watch stays in its base form.
Common mistakes to avoid
Avoid: Did she went to class?
Use: Did she go to class?
Use the base form after did.
Avoid: I buyed a notebook.
Use: I bought a notebook.
Buy is irregular; its past form is bought.
Check your understanding
Answer first without looking at the choices twice. Open the answer panel to see the correct response and the reason.
1. Choose the past simple of go.
- goed
- went
- gone
Reveal answer and explanation
went
Went is the past simple form; gone is the past participle.
2. Complete the question: Did they ___ the match?
- watched
- watch
- watching
Reveal answer and explanation
watch
After did, use the base verb.
Study tip
Write three sentences of your own using the pattern you learned. Say them aloud, check the verb form and read them again the next day. If you make a mistake, correct it and keep the corrected sentence as a revision note.