Elapsed tense is the form of a verb indicating the time it took to take a certain action in the past.
In aggregate, past temporary forms in the English language are usually combined by the concept of Past Tenses. This article will consider three main times, which differ in duration and quality. So, there are indefinite past (Past Indefinite or Simple), long (Past Continuous) and perfect (Past Perfect) tenses.
Past Simple Form
The Past Simple form is the most common and common past tense in English. This is the main time for expressing any action that happened some time ago. Very often it competes with Present Perfect, which, despite belonging to the present tenses, is translated by verbs in the past tense. We must not forget that the perfect present is suitable only when the past action affects the present. If events are not related to the present, use Past Simple.
This time is formed very simply. If the verb is correct, you just need to add the –ed ending to it, if it is incorrect, the necessary form is in the standard table of
irregular verbs :
We played the piano three days ago; I forgot my hat at home.
To form the question, the auxiliary verb did was used:
Did you play the piano yesterday?
For negation, this auxiliary verb is also used, but with a particle of negation not:
She did not watch TV.
Therefore, Past Simple should be applied if the action occurred in the past and is not relevant to the present. Words that portend the use of this tense form of the verb are yesterday (yesterday), 8 years ago (8 years ago), in 1989 (in 1989), and so on.
Past Continuous Form
Past Continuous is a time that indicates a long action in the past. In other words, it is used when it comes to a specific moment, about action in a process. For example, She was playing the guitar yesterday at 10 pm The example shows that Past Continuous is formed using the additional verb to be in the past tense and the verb ending with –ing. If the sentence is interrogative, the auxiliary verb should be moved to the beginning, if negative, not is added to it:
Were you playing the piano yesterday at 10 pm? No, I wasn't doing this at that time.
In addition, this past tense in English is used to indicate an action that once happened at a particular moment and was interrupted by another simultaneous action. For example, We were looking through the magazine when he called.
Past Perfect and Past Perfect Continuous
These tenses are called perfect and perfect long past tenses, respectively. To form them, you must have a good knowledge of the forms of verbs. The past tense in English is completely based on this knowledge. So, for Past Perfect, you need an additional verb have / has in the form of had and the second participle of the main verb. The latter can be found in the table of irregular verbs or formed by adding the familiar ending -ed.
It should be remembered that simple perfect time is used to express an action that has already been completed before a particular moment. In turn, Past Perfect Continuous is used in situations where a certain action began before a certain point in the past and lasted for some time. Past Perfect Continuous is formed using the had been form, to which the main verb with the ending –ing is added.
In general, the past tense in English is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. It is very important to understand and practice everything in various exercises, which will best demonstrate the above rules in practice.