Past Continuous

A Forma Negativa do Passado Contínuo é feita acrescentando-se not entre o passado simples do verbo to be + o gerúndio (-ing) do verbo principal. Observe a tabela abaixo.

I	was not working
You	were not working
He	was not working
She	was not working
It	was not working
We	were not working
You	were not working
They	were not working

 

* FORMAS ABREVIADAS: was not - wasn't / were not - weren't. Ambas as formas são corretas e bastante comuns na Língua Inglesa. Observe alguns exemplos com as formas abreviadas:

I wasn't watching TV last night. (Eu não estava assistindo TV ontem à noite.)

They weren't waiting for her at the airport. (Eles não estavam esperando por ela no aeroporto.)

Bob and Jamey weren't sleeping when Jane got home. (Bob e Jamey não estavam dormindo quando Jane chegou em casa.)

She wasn't reading a book, she was reading a magazine. (Ela não estava lendo um livro, estava lendo uma revista.)

NEGATIVE FORM: SUJEITO + PASSADO SIMPLES DO VERBO TO BE + NOT + GERÚNDIO DO VERBO PRINCIPAL (-ING)

Forma Interrogativa

Na Forma Interrogativa do Passado Contínuo, o sujeito posiciona-se entre o passado simples do verbo to be e o gerúndio (-ing) do verbo principal. 

Observe a tabela abaixo:

Was	I working?
Were	You working?
Was	He working?
Was	She working?
Was	It working?
Were	We working?
Were	You working?
Were	They working?

Veja outros exemplos:

Were you sleeping? (Você estava dormindo?)

Were they studying fot the test? (Eles estavam estudando para a prova?)

What were the children doing in the bedroom? (O que as crianças estavam fazendo no quarto?)

Was it snowing this morning? (Estava nevando esta manhã?)

INTERROGATIVE FORM: PASSADO SIMPLES DO VERBO TO BE + SUJEITO + GERÚNDIO DO VERBO PRINCIPAL (-ING)

O past continuous (passado contínuo) é um dos tempos verbais da língua inglesa, ou se pensarmos, o tempo no português seria o pretérito imperfeito (ação anterior ao momento da fala), é um tempo verbal usado para descrever ações que estavam acontecendo em um determinado período no passado. 

Esse tempo verbal pode ser entendido com a mistura do simple past (passado simples) do verbo to be (ser e estar) (was/were) + o gerúndio do verbo principal (-ing).

Ex: I was studying when you called me

When I woke up this morning, it was snowing.

I was sleeping when you called me.

Exemplos:

• I was reading alone yesterday. 
• I wasn't reading alone yesterday 
• (Eu não estava lendo sozinho ontem)
• You were saying something to her last week. (Você estava dizendo alguma coisa para ela semana passada)
• He was feeling well yesterday. (Ele estava se sentindo bem ontem)
• She was walking alone. (Ela estava caminhando sozinha)
• It was raining last night. (Estava chovendo ontem à noite)
• You were telling me the truth. (Vocês estavam me dizendo a verdade)

Past simple

The past simple shows us that an action was in the past, not in the present. Regular past simple verbs have -ed at the end (e.g. called, played, arrived). Irregular verbs have a different form, usually with a different vowel sound (e.g. wake → woke, break → broke, feel → felt).

Was/were + present participle

You were reading when I walked in.

Were you studying when I called you?

You were not working when I called you.

The Past Continuous has 4 main uses/functions:

Usos principais do Past Continuous:

Use 1 – an interrupted action in the past

Here the Past Continuous is used to indicate a long action that was interrupted. Usually the action that interrupts the long action is the Past Simple.

I was studying when Danny called me.

She was answering an important e-mail when I interrupted her.

While I was jogging, it started raining.

What was he doing when you walked into the room?

John was waiting for us when we got off the train.

I broke my leg while I was skiing.

Use 2 – parallel actions

The Past Continuous is used to indicate that two actions were happening at the same time; hence parallel actions.

I was watching TV while the children were playing outside.

Were you listening while Kevin was explaining the new policy?

While Sarah was speaking to Fred, Peter was trying to get her attention.

What were they doing while you were working?

We were discussing the new project and having a good time as well.

Use 3 – describing a mood/atmosphere

We can use the Past Continuous to describe several actions happening at the same time to describe the atmosphere or situation before or as a main action occurs.

When I walked into the bar, Danny and Fred were arguing again. Chris was chatting to the barman with his usual pint. Peter and Sarah were flirting with each other and Liz was telling the rest of the gang one of her outrageous stories about when she was an actress in the West End. The pub was already smelling of pub food and beer and I just felt that it was so good to be home.

Use 4 – repetition – irritation with 'always'

The Past Continuous with words such as 'always' or 'constantly' indicates something repeated or irritating. Words like 'always' should be placed between the auxiliary 'be' and the present participle.

She was always coming late for meetings. No wonder she was never promoted.

He was always boasting about his financial successes. It irritated us all no end.

I was constantly misplacing my glasses. It’s not a problem with contacts now.

While or when

With the Past Continuous sentences have clauses that start with ‘while’ or ‘when’. ‘While’ usually starts the clause with the Past Continuous, ‘when’ usually starts the clause with the Past Simple.

It started raining while I was jogging.  / While I was jogging, it started raining.

When it started raining, I was jogging. / I was jogging when it started raining.

Notice that although the meaning of each pair of sentences is the same, 'while' or 'when' shift emphasis.

Por exemplo, essa frase:

Can you see a difference in the meaning of these two sentences?

When the guests arrived, Jane was cooking dinner.
When the guests arrived, Jane cooked dinner.

In the first one, Jane started cooking dinner before the guests arrived. We know that because it uses the past continuous. In the second sentence, the guests arrived first and then Jane started cooking.