The past continuous

Exercise 31.

Form Participle I from the following infinitives. Comment on the spelling changes.

Model. to sip – sipping	We double the final -P because it comes after the short stressed vowel.
to study – studying	We don’t change the final -Y before the ending -ING.

to traffic, to supply, to pay, to get, to refer, to sit, to say, to panic, to think, to see, to appear, to be, to tie, to control, to try, to tell, to do, to discuss, to hope, to offer.

Exercise 32.

Model. He was writing the letter then.	He was not writing the letter then.
	Was he writing the letter then?
In the negative sentence we place the negative particle NOT after the auxiliary verb TO BE (was).
In the interrogative sentence we place the auxiliary verb TO BE (was) before the subject.

(a) Make the following sentences negative and interrogative. Comment on the way of forming.

1. It was getting dark.

2. I was working in the garden at that time.

3. They were swimming from 5 till 6.

4. He was talking on the phone then.

5. We were role-playing the dialogue when he came.

6. She was writing the essay all morning yesterday.

7. My parents were decorating the house.

8. I was listening to Text 10.

9. It was raining heavily.

10. She was cooking dinner.

(b) Put questions to the words in bold type.

1. She was always telling everyone about her problems.

2. They were role-playing the dialogue at that moment.

3. We were going to the movies that night.

4. My dad was talking on the phone all evening.

5. She was waiting for Ann.

6. We were writing the test on Monday.

7. They were watching a talk show on telly.

8. He was washing his car.

9. Tom and Mary were watching an interesting film.

10. We were living in Uman at that time.

(c) Ask all possible questions.

Our teacher was explaining the grammar rule to us.

Exercise 33.

Translate the following sentences into Ukrainian and comment on the use of the Past Continuous.

Model. He was writing the letter then.

Він писав тоді листа.

was writing is the form of the Past Continuous Active which denotes an action in progress at a definite moment in the past.

1. In 1982, when oil prices were rising, I published an article saying that ‘Agriculture Will Replace Oil’.

2. Soon the clouds were releasing their moisture so quickly it became the most torrential rain ever known.

3. Never before had the boy walked so far and he was beginning to lose all sense of distance.

4. They were taking their after-luncheon coffee in the library when the telegram arrived.

5. The hill was becoming steeper and steeper; he was gaining speed in spite of his brakes.

6. The animals were making such a noise and the birds were wheeling and singing overhead.

7. ‘Hullo,’ she said, looking up. ‘I’d forgotten you were coming.’

8. He needed a copy of the key. He made sure the office looked undisturbed and at eight o’clock was waiting for the opening of a retail locksmith in Edgware Road.

9. Five minutes later he was passing through the gate of the great courtyard.

10. Today she was wearing a purple silk dress with a high collar and a row of pearls.

Exercise 34.

Fill in the gaps with:

(a) the Past Indefinite or the Past Continuous. Comment on their use.

1. They … (to have) three meals a day.

2. They … (to have) breakfast at that time.

3. He said he … (to see) a patient then.

4. He said he … (to see) everything quite clear.

5. The sign … (to mean) ‘stop’.

6. She always … (to mean) to visit us, but she never did.

7. Jane … (to smell) the flowers.

8. The soup … (to smell) delicious.

9. The doctor … (to feel) the patient’s pulse at that moment.

10. Some of the parents … (to feel) the school wasn’t doing enough about bullying.

(b) the Past Indefinite or the Past Continuous. Comment on their use.

1. Alan … (to apply) for a visa several times before he got one.

2. I … (to leave) when the telephone rang.

3. She wrote that she … (to come) the next Friday.

4. Nancy … (to play) the piano when she was a child.

5. When he came in his brother … (to watch) TV.

6. Julius Caesar … (to invade) Britain in 55 BC.

7. Ron … (to fix) the brakes on the car while Pete … (to mow) the lawn.

8. Sheila … (to find) the document, … (to sit) in the armchair and … (to begin) reading it.

9. Usually Paula … (to be) calm, but that day she … (to be) so nervous.

10. What they … (to do) when you entered the room?

(c) the Past Indefinite, the Past Continuous or TO BE GOING TO + Infinitive. Comment on their use.

1. They said if the weather … (to be) good they would go for a walk.

2. We knew that she … (to leave) on the 14.55 train.

3. There was a strange noise. It was clear that the building … (to collapse).

4. She said that after Martin … (to walk) another five metres, he would see the bridge.

5. Dr Mortimer couldn’t come the next Sunday as he … (to see) his patient.

6. They looked at a sullen gray sky. It … (to rain).

7. Sue said she would be peeling potatoes while Bob … (to gather) some wood.

8. The next meeting … (to be) on 27^th June, so they had plenty of time to get ready.

9. Mary said that if Dave … (to ask) for help, she would do her best to settle the problem.

10. When she asked him why he hadn’t cleaned his room, he said he … (to do) it later.

Exercise 35.

Translate the following sentences into English using the Past Indefinite, the Past Continuous or TO BE GOING TO + Infinitive. Comment on their use.

1. Коли Джонсон повернувся, Ненсі все ще переглядала папери.

2. Небо було сіре, дув холодний вітер і було зрозуміло, що йтиме сніг.

3. У 1840 році англійці випустили першу марку в світі.

4. Поки Джейн друкувала контракт, Пол виправляв помилки.

5. Том збирався обговорити ту справу з Пітером наступного понеділка.

6. У дитинстві він грав на гітарі.

7. Ми збиралися зайти до Мартіна, але він зателефонував і сказав, що зустрічається з клієнтом о 10-й годині.

8. Ми написали контрольну, здали роботи і пішли додому.

9. Вона зателефонувала мені, і ми домовилися зустрітись наступного дня.

10. Дороті куштувала яблучний пиріг, коли прийшов Роджер. Він завжди приходив у найневдаліший час!