Past simple, regular verbs

When you use it

The past simple describes an action or a state that is finished and belongs to a time in the past. The time is often named, or is clear from the context: yesterday, last week, in 2020, when I was a child. It does not matter whether the action was long or short, repeated or single, completed or interrupted; if the time is over, the past simple is the normal tense. This is easier than in Ukrainian and Russian, where you must choose an aspect: both я працював and я попрацював become I worked.

How it is formed

A regular verb forms its past by adding -ed to the base form. The same form is used for every subject, so there is nothing to learn for he, she and it.

In the negative and the question the past is carried by did, and the main verb returns to its base form. Only one word in the sentence shows the past, never two. Short answers use did alone: Did you call her? Yes, I did. No, I didn't.

Typical time expressions with this tense are yesterday, last night, last week, two days ago, in 2019 and when I was ten. Ago stands after the period, not before it, which matches the order of два роки тому and два года назад. Because did takes over in negatives and questions, the -ed form is needed only in affirmative sentences.

Spelling changes when the base form ends in certain letters.

The -ed ending is written the same way everywhere but pronounced in three ways, depending on the last sound of the base form.

Only the third group adds a syllable. Walked has one syllable, wanted has two.

Examples

• I worked late yesterday.
• Tom called me on Sunday.
• We watched a film and then cooked dinner.
• Anna studied German for two years.
• The bus stopped outside the school.
• They didn't play football because it rained.
• Did you finish the report?
• She wanted to stay, but the shop closed at six.

Common mistakes

• ✗ I didn't worked yesterday.
  ✓ I didn't work yesterday.
  Не працював and не работал keep the past ending on the verb after не. In English did already shows the past, so the main verb goes back to the base form.
• ✗ Did you played tennis?
  ✓ Did you play tennis?
  The same rule applies in questions: did carries the tense, the main verb stays bare.
• ✗ I was work in a shop last year.
  ✓ I worked in a shop last year.
  Learners look for a past marker like був or был and reach for was. English marks the past on the verb itself; was is only the past of be, not a helper for other verbs.
• ✗ She stoped the car. / He studyed all night.
  ✓ She stopped the car. / He studied all night.
  The final consonant is doubled after a short stressed vowel, and -y after a consonant becomes -ied. The spoken forms give no clue, so check the spelling table.
• ✗ Yesterday I have finished the book.
  ✓ Yesterday I finished the book.
  Дочитав and дочитал are perfective, and learners often map that to the present perfect. When the time is named and finished, English uses the past simple, whatever the aspect in your language.

Try it