Master The Past Simple: 3 Exercises To Boost Your Skill

By Benjamin Essek

Master The Past Simple

Do you find it difficult to use the simple past tense in English? You’re not alone, so don’t worry! This essential part of English grammar might be difficult to understand. But with the correct exercises and practice, you may sharpen your writing abilities and master the simple past tense. Three exercises that can help you polish your grammar and gain greater self-assurance as a writer are provided to you in this post.

Exercise 1: Put the verbs in brackets in the right tense to complete the passage

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Created on By Benjamin Essek

Past Simple Practice

Put the verbs in brackets in the right tense to complete the passage

1 / 7

Six thousand couples ...(a)... not to let the coronavirus deter them from tying the knot. The multiple brides and grooms from sixty countries around the world ...(b)... a mass wedding ceremony in South Korea's Unification Church on Friday. 24,000 guests  ...(c)... the newlyweds.

2 / 7

The church ...(a)... well ...(b)... for such a large-scale event as its staff handed out hand sanitizer and masks to all attendees. They also ...(c)... the temperature of the couples.

3 / 7

The Unification Church, ...(a)... in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon, is famous for holding mass weddings. One newlywed ...(b)... about marrying amid the global spread of the coronavirus.

4 / 7

He ...(a)...the Reuters news agency: "I ...(b)... very happy to attend this blessed joint wedding. Since coronavirus is going around these days, I ...(c)... a mask just to be on the safe side."

5 / 7

By sharp contrast, a 23-year-old bride from Benin (say)...(a)...: "I (not want)...(b)... to put on a mask because I (want) ...(c)... to be beautiful for my husband.

6 / 7

I (wait) ...(a)... for this day for too long. However, It (will) ...(b)... be a lie if I (say) ...(c)... I (be) ...(d)... not concerned at all about the infection.”

7 / 7

Kim Chang-Seong, 27, who was marrying a woman he (meet) ...(a)... only 20 days ago, said he was not worried about infection because the mass wedding (have) ...(b)... “special meaning” for him.

Your score is

The average score is 86%

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Exercise 2: Choose the most suitable given verbs to complete the sentences with past simple, add a comma between 2 answers for multiple answers

were.  lived. visited.  saw.  broke. lent.  born. arrived.  sworn. met.  gave.  worn.  crept. drove. sold.  stopped. bought. traveled. had. rang.  got. had. stopped.

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Created on By Benjamin Essek

Past Simple Practice

Choose the most suitable given verbs to complete the sentences with past simple

1 / 20

I  _________ Carol at the party. She _____________ a really beautiful dress.

2 / 20

My friend __________ me a bar of chocolate when I  __________ at school yesterday.

3 / 20

The telephone _______ several times and then ______before I could answer it.

4 / 20

I _________ .around by car with two friends and we  __________  lots of interesting places.

5 / 20

Yesterday, I _______________ up at 6 and __________ breakfast at 6.30.

6 / 20

We _______ in the grocery store and _________ some sandwiches.

7 / 20

When we  ________________ at the restaurant, the place _______ full.

8 / 20

They _____ an Autumn fashion Show three months ago.

9 / 20

The unidentified plant ___________ gorgeous flowers.

10 / 20

I __________ my penknife to someone, but I can't remember who it was now.

11 / 20

He ___________ the biscuit in half and handed one piece to me.

12 / 20

Yesterday Clouds ___________ across the horizon, just above the line of trees.

13 / 20

Lan and Mai _______ sharks, dolphins and turtles at Tri Nguyen aquarium.

14 / 20

My parents ____________ the stereo at a garage sale.

15 / 20

We  ______________ around the parking lot for 20 mins to find a parking space.

16 / 20

Before God He ___________ he was innocent

17 / 20

They __________ their friends at the movie theater last week

18 / 20

Neil Armstrong __________ the first man on the moon.

19 / 20

My friends __________ a great time in Nha Trang last year.

20 / 20

Mom and Dad _________  at home yesterday.

Your score is

The average score is 3%

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Exercise 3: Make a complete sentence with the given words

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Created on By Benjamin Essek

Past Simple Practice

Make a complete sentence with the given words

1 / 20

My/friend/ make/birthday cake/ for me/last year.

2 / 20

My/ mother/ not at home/yesterday.

3 / 20

Mai/ visit/ her/ friends/ last/ year.

4 / 20

she / go / supermarket yesterday.

5 / 20

last night / Phong /listen / music / for two hours.

6 / 20

Nam / I / study / hard / last weekend.

7 / 20

My/ father/ not/ at the office/ the day/ before yesterday

8 / 20

We/ have/ fun/ yesterday.

9 / 20

Joni/ go/ zoo/ five/ day/ ago.

10 / 20

Tyler/ visit/ his/ grandmother/ last/ month.

11 / 20

My/ mother/ make/ two/cakes/ four/days/ ago.

12 / 20

I/ play/ football/ last/ Sunday.

13 / 20

How/ you/ get there?

14 / 20

They/ happy/ last holiday?

15 / 20

Mr. and Mrs. James/ come back home/ and/ have/ lunch/ late/ last night

16 / 20

How/ be/ he/ yesterday?

17 / 20

She/ not/ go/ to the church/ five days ago.

18 / 20

When/ you/ get/ the first gift?

19 / 20

In 1990/ we/ move/ to another city.

20 / 20

It/ be/ cloudy/ yesterday.  

Your score is

The average score is 77%

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By working through these three exercises, you’ll be well on your way to understanding the English past simple tense and 4 types of past tense. Keep in mind that repetition and regular practice are the keys to success. If you keep practising, you’ll soon be writing in the past tense like an expert! Let’s now explore the exciting realm of the past continuous tense to gain more skill.