Helping Hints for the Past
Auxiliary Verbs Used with Past Tenses
Knowledge of auxiliary verbs used in various tenses is the key to correct tense conjugation. Here is a review of auxiliary verbs for past tenses:
Past Simple:
Use 'did' in the question and negative form to express something that happened at a specific moment in the past. Use no auxiliary verb in the positive form.
Example:
The company did not send the common trust fund on time last month.
Did they use pension funds for the exclusive purpose of financing pension plan benefits in this bank?
BUT:
The company got a patent for its new product last week.
Past Continuous:
Use 'was / were' in the past tense for the positive, negative and question forms in the past continuous tense to express what was happening at a specific moment in the past.
Example:
The operators were going to work on the raw materials when the alarm went off.
He was negotiating the final contract details when the computer crashed.
Past Simple Passive:
Use 'was / were' in the past for positive, negative and question in the past simple passive to express a past passive operation. Remember that the passive takes the participle form of the principal verb.
Example:
The balance was paid off in partial payment for the car loan.
The spreadsheet was flawed and caused mistakes in the other financial reports.
Past Perfect:
Use 'had' in the past for the positive, negative and question forms for the past perfect tense to express something that had happened before another action occurred in the past.
Example:
The economy had been struggling through a bear market for so long that people didn't know how to react.
Was the dividend presentation prepared by Dan?
Past Perfect Continuous:
Use the verb 'had been' in the past perfect for the positive, negative and question forms for the past perfect tense to express the duration of something that had been happening up to another past moment in time.
Example:
They hadn't been using that credit card account long when they used up their card's limit.
The economy had been struggling through a bear market for so long that people didn't know how to react.