Form: past continuous
was / were + verb-ing
The past continuousThe aspect expressing duration, formed with be + verb-ing. E.g.: What are you doing? is formed with was / were (the past tenseA grammatical category that is marked by verb inflection. To express when an event or action happens in time or when a state exists, we use tenses. of be) + the (present participle) -ing form of the verb.
AffirmativeA declarative sentence indicating "yes"; also called a positive sentence. E.g.: John likes squash a lot.
| subjectThe person or thing that performs the action of a verb or that is described by a verb. E.g.: Andy has never been to Brunei. ("Andy") | auxiliaryA helping verb used with main verbs to express mood, voice and tense. E.g.: I can't stand when I am disturbed. ("can", "am") | verb (present participle) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I He/she/it |
was | sleeping | when George arrived. |
| You We You They |
were |
NegativeA declarative sentence indicating "no". E.g.: Tim has no friends.
| subject | auxiliary | not | verb (present participle) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I He/she/it |
was | not | sleeping | when George arrived. |
| You We You They |
were |
The contracted forms wasn't and weren't are often used instead of was not and were not in spoken and in informalBelonging to colloquial or everyday speech E.g.: I want Mr Smith to call the guy that the committee has decided on. written language.
InterrogativeThe sentence type used to express a direct question. E.g.: What are you doing?
| (question wordA word that introduces a wh-question. E.g.: What are you doing?) | auxiliary | subject | verb (present participle) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (Where) | was | I he/she/it |
sleeping | when George arrived? |
| were | you we you they |
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Comments and questions
It's understandable. Thanks
It's understandable.
Thanks for sharing it.
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