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:
Glen didn't agree with the advocacy plan they read to us last Thursday.
Where did the affected population flee to after the nuclear accident last March?
BUT:
Our Advocacy Group won a decisive victory last weekend.
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:
What was happening on the ground when the project began?
Tom was speaking off the record when he admitted to his crimes.
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:
Our organizational structure wasn't designed in time for the incorporation process.
Was the outcome known by management?
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 Senate Ad Hoc Committee had been debating the bill for three hours when they called for a vote.
The policy was formulated to address workplace violence.
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:
How long had you been working on forming an advocacy alliance before the other nonprofit backed out?
We'd been working on the peace-building process for five months when the ambassador rejected the plan's premise.