Past continuous

A2 24 / 50

In short

Use the past continuous (was/were + verb-ing) for an action that was in progress at a moment in the past. It often sets the background or scene, while the past simple gives the shorter, completed events.

The rule

The past continuous shows that an action was already happening at a certain past time - it had started but had not finished yet.

We use it to:

Describe an action in progress at a specific past moment. At 8 p.m. I was cooking dinner. (I started before 8 and was still cooking at 8.)
Give a longer background action that a shorter past-simple action interrupts. Use when before the short event and while before the long one. I was reading when the phone rang. While I was reading, the lights went out.
Show two longer actions happening at the same time. She was studying while he was cooking.
Set the scene at the start of a story. The sun was shining and the birds were singing.

Key contrast:

Tense	Job in the sentence
Past continuous	the longer action in progress / the background
Past simple	the shorter, completed action / the main events

Stative verbs (know, want, like, have = own, be) usually do not take the continuous here: say I knew the answer, not I was knowing. (See Present continuous for the list.)

Forms & patterns

Subject + was/were + verb-ing:

Subject	was/were	-ing
I / he / she / it	was	working
you / we / they	were	working

Negative - add not after was/were:

Full	Short
I was not sleeping	I wasn’t sleeping
They were not sleeping	They weren’t sleeping

Questions - move was/were in front of the subject:

Type	Example	Short answer
Yes/No	Was she driving?	Yes, she was. / No, she wasn’t.
Wh-	What were you doing?	I was waiting for the bus.

Spelling of -ing: make -> making (drop final e), sit -> sitting (double the final consonant), lie -> lying (ie -> y).

Examples

English	Note
At midnight we were still dancing.	Action in progress at a clear past time.
I was waiting at the station when the train arrived.	Long background action + short past-simple event.
While the kids were sleeping, Dad cooked breakfast.	While + long action; the short action follows.
Tom was watching TV while Mia was doing her homework.	Two longer actions at the same time.
It was raining hard, and the wind was blowing.	Setting the scene in a story.
What were you doing at six o’clock yesterday?	Wh- question; was/were before the subject.
She wasn’t listening, so she missed the news.	Negative: the action was not in progress.
I cut my finger while I was chopping onions.	Past simple = the event; past continuous = the background.

Common mistakes

I was knowing the answer -> I knew the answer - stative verbs don’t take the continuous.
When I was cooking, I burn my hand -> When I was cooking, I burnt my hand - the short, finished event needs past simple.
We was watching a film -> We were watching a film - use were with you/we/they.
While I read, the phone rang -> While I was reading, the phone rang - while usually goes with the longer, in-progress action.
What you were doing? -> What were you doing? - move was/were before the subject in questions.

Tips

Picture a line and a dot: the past continuous is the line (action going on), the past simple is the dot (the moment something happens on that line).
Easy pairing: when + past simple (short event), while + past continuous (longer action).
If you can add still in front of the verb (I was still eating), the past continuous fits.
For habits or single finished facts, use the past simple instead - the past continuous is only for actions in progress.