PAST TENSES

TIEMPOS DE PASADO

1. Past Simple
Pasado simple
• We use the past simple:
Usamos el pasado simple:
o To express finished events that took place in the past, such as anecdotes or historical
events.
Para expresar acontecimientos acabados que tuvieron lugar en el pasado, como por
ejemplo anécdotas o hechos históricos.
 The Vikings invaded Great Britain.
Los vikingos invadieron Gran Bretaña.
o With a finished time-word: yesterday, last week, in 2003…
Con una expresión temporal finalizada: ayer, la semana pasada, en 2003…
 She graduated last year.
Ella se graduó el año pasado.
o To enumerate a list of events.
Para enumerar una lista de acciones.
 He went to a café, sat down and lit a cigarette.
Él fue a una cafetería, se sentó y encendió un cigarrillo.
• This is the structure we use with the past simple:
Ésta es la estructura que usamos con el pasado simple:

Affirmative
• Regular verbs: -ed
• Irregular verbs: 2nd column
Examples:
 I studied hard for the exam.
Estudié duro para el examen.
 I sang my favourite song.
Canté mi canción favorita.

o En las oraciones afirmativas, es importante distinguir si se trata de un verbo

regular o irregular. Si el verbo es regular simplemente se le añade ‘-ed’ al infinitivo.
Ahora bien, si el verbo es irregular, se debe poner la forma correspondiente (la
segunda columna de la lista). Todas las personas (I, he, we, they, etc.) tienen la
misma forma.
 Negative
• Did not / didn’t + verb (infinitive)
Examples:
 I did not understand the lesson.
No entendí la lección.
 He didn’t say anything.
No dijo nada.

o En las oraciones negativas, ponemos ‘did not’ o ‘didn’t’ delante del verbo principal
en infinitivo.

Interrogative
• Did + subject + verb (infinitive)
Examples:
 Did she tell you the truth?
¿Te dijo ella la verdad?
 Did you pass the exam?
¿Aprobaste el examen?

o En las interrogativas, el auxiliar ‘did’ se coloca delante del sujeto, que va seguido
del verbo principal en infinitivo.

• La conjugación del verbo ‘to be’ es irregular:

o I was
o You were
o He / she / it was
o We / you / they were
• These are the most common expressions found with the past simple:
Éstas son las expresiones más comunes usadas con el pasado simple:
o Yesterday
o Last week / month / year
o “x” days / weeks / months / years ago
o In 2015, on April 3rd, etc.
2. Past Continuous
Pasado Continuo
• We use the past continuous to express:
Usamos el pasado continuo para expresar:
o A continuous action in the past which is interrupted by another action.
Una acción continua en el pasado que es interrumpida por otra acción.
 I was watching TV when you arrived.
Estaba mirando la tele cuando llegaste.
o An annoying and repeated action in the past, usually with ‘always’ (in the same
way as the present continuous).
Una acción molesta y repetitiva en el pasado, normalmente usado con ‘always’ (de
la misma manera que con el presente continuo).
 He was always leaving the tap running.
Él siempre se dejaba el grifo abierto.

o Two actions which happened at the same time in the past.

Dos acciones que pasaban al mismo tiempo en el pasado.
 I was eating a sandwich and she was drinking coffee.
Yo me estaba comiendo un bocadillo y ella estaba bebiendo café.
• To make the past continuous we can follow these structures:
Para hacer el pasado continuo podemos seguir estas estructuras:

Affirmative
• Subject + was / were + v (-ing)
Examples:
 I was taking a bath when the phone rang.
Me estaba dando un baño cuando el teléfono sonó.
 You were playing tennis when I saw you.
Estabas jugando a tenis cuando te vi.

o Las oraciones afirmativas llevan ‘was’ o ‘were’ dependiendo del sujeto (‘was’ para
‘I’, ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘it’ y ‘were’ para ‘we’, ‘you’, ‘they’).
 Negative
• Subject + wasn’t / weren’t + v (-ing)
Examples:
 She wasn’t weari ng the blue
dress.
Ella no llevaba puesto el vestido azul.
 It wasn’t so we decided to
raining,go for a
walk.
No estaba lloviendo, así que
decidimos ir a pasear.

o Para las oraciones negativas, ponemos el auxiliar, es decir ‘was’ o ‘were’ (según el
sujeto) seguido de ‘not’. Las formas contraídas serían ‘wasn’t’ y ‘weren’t,
respectivamente. El verbo principal se mantiene con ‘-ing’.

Interrogative
• Was / were + subject + v (-ing)
Examples:
 Were you looking at me when I
scored a goal?
¿Me estabas mirando cuando
marqué un gol?
 Were they having a good time?
¿Se lo estaban pasando bien?

o Para el interrogativo, podemos el auxiliar primero (‘was’ o ‘were’), seguido del

sujeto, y finalmente el verbo con ‘-ing’.

• The most common words used with the past continuous are:
Las palabras más comunes que se usan con el pasado continuo son:
o While: While my brother was playing the guitar, my sister was trying to study.
Mientras: Mientras mi hermano estaba tocando la guitarra, mi hermana estaba
intentando estudiar.
o At that moment: the baby wasn’t sleeping at that moment.
En ese momento: el bebé no estaba durmiendo en ese momento.
o At one / two / etc o’clock: At nine o’clock I was watching TV.
A la una / las dos / etc en punto / y media: a las nueve en punto yo estaba mirando
la tele.
3. Past Perfect
Pasado perfecto

• We use the past perfect:

Usamos el pasado perfecto:

o To talk about a completed action before another action in the past.

Para hablar sobre una acción completada antes de otra acción en el pasado.
 When we arrived, the film had already started (first, the film started, and
then we arrived).
Cuando llegamos, la película ya había empezado (primero la película
empezó, y luego llegamos).

o To explain or give reason for something in the past.

Para explicar o dar motivos por algo en el pasado.
 I had eaten, so I wasn’t hungry.
Había comido, así que no tenía hambre.

• This is how we can form the past perfect:

Así es como podemos formar el pasado perfecto:

Affirmative
• Subject + had + past participle
Examples:
 I had finished the exam a few minutes before bell rang.
Había terminado el examen pocos minutos antes de que sonara el timbre.
 They were very happy because they had won the lottery.
Ellos estaban muy felices porque habían ganado la lotería.

o En el pasado perfecto, el verbo auxiliar es ‘had’. Cuando la oración es afirmativa,

ponemos el auxiliar después del sujeto (es el mismo para todas las personas). El
verbo principal tiene que estar en participio. Los participios en inglés se forman
añadiendo ‘-ed’ para los verbos que son regulares, mientras que para los
irregulares se utiliza la tercera columna de la lista de verbos irregulares.
 Negative
• Subject + had not / hadn’t + past participle

Examples:
 She had n’t st arte d her homework by the time the lesson started.
Ella no había empezado los deberes cuando la clase empezó.
 They hadn’t ever been to New Zealand (they really enjoyed their holidays).
Ellos nunca habían estado en Nueva Zelanda (ellos realmente disfrutaron de
sus vacaciones).

o En las oraciones negativas ponemos un ‘not’ entre el auxiliar (‘had’) y el verbo

principal en participio. La forma contraída es ‘hadn’t’.

Interrogative
• Had + subject + past participle
Examples:
 Had you cleaned the house before your parents arrived?
¿Habías limpiado la casa antes de que llegaran tus padres?
 Had Oscar Wilde written many books before he got married?
¿María escrito Oscar Wilde muchos libros antes de casarse?

o Para hacer preguntas, seguimos el mismo sistema de siempre: ponemos el auxiliar

delante del sujeto (en este caso, ‘had’), y después del sujeto, el verbo en
participio.

• These are the most common time expressions we can find with this verbal tense:
Éstas son las expresiones de tiempo más comunes que podemos encontrar con este
tiempo verbal:
o By (+ then / 3 o’clock…): He had finished his essay by 10 o’clock.
Para (+ entonces / las 3 en punto…): Él había terminado el ensayo para las 10 en
punto.
o By the time: By the time we got to the station, our train had already left.
Cuando: Cuando llegamos a la estación, nuestro tren ya había partido.
o Before: They had already checked in their luggage before their plane arrived.
Antes: Ellos ya habían facturado su equipaje antes de que llegara su avión.
o After: I left after I paid the bill.
Después: Me fui después de pagar la cuenta.
 o Just: I had just closed the door when the doorbell rang.
Acabar de: Acababa de cerrar la puerta cuando el timbre sonó.

4. Past Perfect Continuous

Pasado Perfecto Continuo

• We use the past perfect continuous to talk about actions that started in the past and
continued up to another point also in the past.
Usamos el pasado perfecto continuo para hablar de acciones que empezaron en el pasado y
continuaron hasta otro punto, también del pasado.
o Examples:
 He had been working in a bank until he got fired.
Él estuvo trabajando en un banco hasta que le despidieron.

• This is the structure of the past perfect continuous:

Ésta es la estructura del pasado perfecto continuo:

Affirmative
• Subject + had + been + v-ing

Examples:
 They had been doing grammar exercises for two hours.
Ellos habían estado haciendo ejercicios de gramática durante dos horas.
 Janet had been working so hard that she was exhausted.
Janet había estado trabajando tan duro que estaba exhausta.

o En afirmativo ponemos el sujeto, ‘had been’ y luego el verbo en gerundio, es decir,

terminado en ‘-ing’. Todas las personas gramaticales tienen la misma forma.
 Negative
• Subject + had not + been + v-ing

Examples:
 The dog hadn’t been sleeping before you arrived.
El perro no había estado durmiendo antes de que llegaras.
 The students hadn’t been expecting good marks.
Los estudiantes no habían estado esperando buenas notas.

o En las oraciones negativas, ponemos un ‘not’ después de ‘had’. Seguidamente va

‘been’ y finalmente el verbo en gerundio. La forma contraída sería ‘hadn’t been +v-
ing’.

Interrogative
• Had + subject + been + v-ing

Examples:
 Had she been writing for a long time when I arrived?
¿Había estado ella escribiendo durante mucho tiempo cuando yo llegué?
 Had you been studying hard before the exam?
¿Habías estado estudiando duro antes del examen?

o En el interrogativo ponemos el auxiliar ‘had’ delante del sujeto. Seguido de éste

ponemos ‘been’ y después el verbo principal en gerundio.

• The past perfect continuous is often used with the following words and expressions:
El pasado perfecto continuo a menudo se usa con las siguientes palabras y expresiones:
o For: The girl had been reading for hours.
Durante: La chica había estado leyendo durante horas.
o Since: The champion had been hoping to win the race since last year.
Desde: El campeón había estado esperando ganar la carrera desde el año pasado.
o Before: They had been talking about Chris before he turned up.
Antes: Ellos habían estado hablando sobre Chris antes de que él apareciera.
o All day / all night: They had been partying all night.
Todo el día / toda la noche: Ellos habían estado festejando toda la noche.
 ACTIVITY PAST TENSES

1. When we were in Switzerland, we skiing every day.

a. Went
b. Were going
c. Had gone
2. I to become a teacher four years ago.
a. Was deciding
b. Decided
c. Had been deciding.
3. Susie a shower when the telephone rang.
a. Had been having
b. Had
c. Was having
4. Martha you at half past five yesterday, but you weren’t home.
a. Called
b. Was calling
c. Has called you
5. I about my favourite film when the alarm clock woke me up.
a. Dreamt
b. Had dreamt
c. Was dreaming
6. I had only my homework for a few minutes when the lights were turned off.
a. Done
b. Been doing
c. Doing
7. Had you already James about the party when I came across both of you?
a. Told
b. Been telling
c. Telling
8. Dad had his beer for a couple of minutes before he realised there was a fly in it.
a. Been drinking
b. Drunk
c. Drank
9. I had a wonderful time because I had never in a plane before.
a. Flown
b. Been flying
c. Flied
KEY
1. A
2. B
3. C
4. A
5. C
6. B
7. A
8. A
9. A
 ‘USED TO’ AND ‘WOULD’
1. ‘Used to’
We use ‘used to’ to talk about habits and states in the past, especially for the distant past.
Usamos ‘used to’ para hablar de hábitos y estados en el pasado, especialmente cuando nos
referimos a un pasado distante. Se traduce como ‘solía’.
o Example:
 When I was a child, my grandfather used to take me to the park.
Cuando era pequeño, mi abuelo me solía llevar al parque.
 When she was young she used to be an excellent student.
Cuando ella era joven, solía ser una estudiante excelente.
It is always followed by an infinitive.
Siempre va seguido de un infinitivo.

2. ‘Would’
We use ‘would’ only to talk about habits in the past, but not states. It also refers to the
distant past.
Usamos ‘would’ solamente para hablar sobre hábitos en el pasado, pero no sobre estados.
También se refiere al pasado distante y se traduce como ‘solía’.
o Example:
 Before we got married, David would take me to the cinema and would invite
me to eat out.
Antes de casarnos, David solía llevarme al cine y solía invitarme a comer fuera.
We don’t normally use ‘would’ in negative or interrogative sentences with the same meaning.
If we want to make a negative sentence, we can use ‘would never’.
Normalmente no usamos ‘would’ en oraciones negativas o interrogativas con el mismo
significado. Si queremos hacer una frase negativa podemos usar ‘would never’.
o Example:
 They would never play board games with their family.
Ellos no solían jugar (nunca jugaban) a juegos de mesa con su familia.

3. Be used to
This expression is followed by a noun or by a gerund (a verb ending in ‘-ing’). We use it to talk
about a familiar situation that is no longer strange:
Esta expresión va seguida de un sustantivo o un gerundio (un verbo terminado en ‘-ing’). La
usamos para hablar sobre una situación familiar que ya no nos resulta extraña. Se traduce
como “estar acostumbrado a”.
o Example:
 I didn’t like sailing at first, but now I’m used to it.
Al principio no me gustaba navegar, pero ahora estoy acostumbrada.
4. Get used to
When we are talking about the process of becoming familiar with something, we use ‘get
used to’.
Cuando hablamos sobre el proceso de familiarizarse con algo, usamos ‘get used to’. Se
traduce como “acostumbrarse a”.
o Example:
 I’m gradually getting used to waking up at 6 o’clock every day.
 Me estoy acostumbrando gradualmente a despertarme a las 6 en punto cada
día.
 ACTIVITY USED TO AND WOULD

1. When I was a child I live in a village.

a. Got used to
b. Would
c. Used to
2. Every summer they go to the pool and have a swim.
a. Would
b. Are used to
c. Got used
3. I have been living in a big city for 10 years. I living with noisy neighbours.
a. Am get used to
b. Am used to
c. Use to
4. She really can’t used to having a flatmate.
a. Be
b. Get
c. –
5. There to be a theatre in this street, but it was closed down.
a. Used to
b. Would
c. Get used
6. It was very strange at first, but now I’m used to chess with the new rules.
a. Playing
b. Play
c. Played
7. She have blonde hair, but then she got it dyed.
a. Is used to
b. Gets used to
c. Used to
8. Anthony used to the idea of quitting his job.
a. Was getting
b. Was having
c. Was
9. Forty years ago people walking more than they are now
a. Use to
b. Would have
c. were used to
KEY
1. C
2. A
3. B
4. B
5. A
6. A
7. C
8. A
9. C
 READING

Source: Carne, Paul et al. 1996. Cambridge Practice Tests for First Certificate 1. United Kingdom: Cambridge
University Press.
KEY 1 B 2C 3B 4A 5C 6B 7D 8D
 SPEAKING

PART 1

What is your favourite dish? How often do you eat it? (30s)
Do you like cooking? Why? Why not? How often do you cook? (30s)

Are you satisfied with your lifestyle and diet? (30s)

PART 2

Tell me what you can see in these two pictures (45s)

Why do people eat unhealthy food? (45s)
How can unhealthy eating affect people? (45s)
PART 3

Describe these pictures (45s)

Which situation do you prefer? (45s)
How often do you eat out? (45s)
PART 4
Answer these three questions in 2 minutes.

(1) Why is it important to try the traditional cuisine when we go abroad?

(2) Talk about the traditional cuisine of your country and (3) describe one dish.
 VOCABULARIO
Food and drink
Chop Cortar Slice Cortar en
rebanadas
Grate Rallar Bake Hornear
Grill Gratinar / parrilla Fry Freir
Roast Asar Boil Hervir
Cook Cocinar / cocinero Cooker Cocina (fogón)
Chef Jefe de cocina Oven Horno
Wash Lavar Hob Hornillo
Kitchen Cocina Cuisine Cocina (estilo)
Lunch Comida (mediodía) Dinner Cena
Plate Plato Bowl Bol
Saucer Platito (té/café) Dish Plato
Vegetables Verduras Vegetarian Vegetariano
Vegan Vegano Fast food Comida rápida
Takeaway Para llevar Kettle Caldera eléctrica
Teapot Tetera Freezer Congelador
Fridge Nevera Mix Mezclar
Stir Remover Whisk Batir
Soft drink Refresco Fizzy drink Bebida con gas
Menu Menú Catalogue Catálogo
Feed Alimentar Meal Comida
Recipe Receta

Health and fitness

Surgery Cirujía Infection Infección
Therapy Terapia Bandage Vendaje
Plaster Escayola Hurt Herir
Pain Dolor Illness / disease Enfermedad
Healthy Saludable Unhealthy No saludable
Injury Lesión Injure Lesionar
Damage Daño Dose Dosis
Fever Fiebre Prescription Receta (médica)
Get over Recuperarse Look after Cuidar
Pass out Desmayarse Appointment Cita
Fit En forma Medicine Medicamento
Addicted to Adicto a Benefit from Beneficiarse de
Allergy Alergia Poison Veneno
 ACTIVITY

1. It is very important to eat a diet with lots of vegetables and fruit.

a. Healthy
b. Fit
c. Bandage
2. My grandmother is the best in the world!
a. Cooker
b. Cook
c. Cuisine
3. Lasagne is one of my favourite .
a. Bowls
b. Saucers
c. Dishes
4. people don’t eat meat, fish or even milk and cheese.
a. Vegetable
b. Vegetarian
c. Vegan
5. It’s 8pm already. It’s time to have _.
a. Breakfast
b. Dinner
c. Lunch
6. Many famous actresses have to have their nose straightened.
a. A surgery
b. An operation
c. A plaster
7. My back so hard that I can’t even get up from bed.
a. Pains
b. Hurts
c. Injuries
8. Wash your wound properly in order not to get .
a. An injury
b. An infection
c. A pollution
9. After the operation he was in such that he was given a huge dose of
morphine.
a. Pain
b. Fever
c. Hurt
KEY
1. A
2. B
3. C
4. C
5. B
6. B
7. B
8. B
9. A
 WRITING UNIT 4

PART 1
Fill in the form. You have 3 minutes.

ORDER MEALS ONLINE – REGISTRATION FORM

Username

Date of Birth (day month year)

City / Town / Village

[Mobile number]

House:

[Delivery address] Street:

State:

PART 2
You’ve joined the ‘ORDER MEALS ONLINE’ site. Fill in the form. Write in sentences
using 20 – 30 words. You have 7 minutes.

MEMBER FORM
Please tell us about your favourite food and time when you prefer to have your meals.
PART 3
You are a member of MEALS DELIVERY ONLINE website and you are in the chat room.
Talk to Mike using complete sentences. Use 30 – 40 words per answer. You have ten
minutes.

Mike: Hi! I see you’re new here. I joined a year ago after I started living alone. Why did
you join?

You:

Mike: What do you think about the service?

You:

Mike: How do you feel about the recent rise in the price of pizzas? It was 20% cheaper
before.

You:
PART 4
You are a member of ‘MEALS DELIVERY ONLINE’. On your last visit to their website you
saw the notice below.

Dear valued customers,

We are sorry to inform you that from next month we have to introduce a fee for the
meals’ delivery. It will constitute 10% of the meal order. We have to introduce this
measure to reduce the high costs involved in delivering the meals.

If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at

[email protected].

Write an email to a friend who also uses the MEALS DELIVERY ONLINE service. Write
your feelings about the notice and suggest possible alternatives. Write about 50
words. You have 10 minutes.
Now write an email to the Customer Service Team, explaining your feelings about the
notice and suggesting possible alternatives. Write 120-150 words. You have 20
minutes.