3. Describingspecificincidents in thepast Whenwe describe specificincidents in thepastwe use narrative tenses Past Simple: was, happened, took… PastContinuous: wasreading, weregoing… PastPerfect: hadgone, hadtaken… PastPerfectContinuous: hadbeenwaiting, hadbeentalking …
4. Thishappenedwhen I was 5 yearsold. My fatherhadgoneawayonbusiness and my brother and I were sleeping in my parents’ bedroom. Beforewewenttobedthatnight, I hadbeenreadinga veryscarystory. Past simple: mainactionsorevents Pastcontinuous: to set thescene, to describe actions in progress. Pastperfectand PastPerfectContinuous: totalkaboutthingswhichhappenedbeforethemainevents
5. Describingrepeatedactions in thepast Usedto + infinitiveisused as analternativetothepast simple totalkaboutthingswedidrepeatedly in thepast My familyrented a country houseeveryyearforoursummerholidays. My familyusedtorenta country houseeveryyearforoursummerholidays. Usedto + infinitiveisalsousedtotalkaboutsituationsorstateswhichhavechanged He usedtohavea beard and wearglassesbutnow he has a moustache and usuallywearscontactlenses.
6. Describingrepeatedactions in thepast As analternativetousedto + infinitive, we can also use would + infinitive. Beforewewenttobed, my motherusedtoreadus a storyfrom a storybook. Beforewewenttobed, my motherwouldreadus a storyfrom a storybook. Don’t use would + infinitivewith non-action (stative) verbs I wouldhavemuchlongerhairwhen I wasyounger I usedtohavemuchlongerhairwhen I wasyounger
7. Describingrepeatedactions in thepast We can also use always + pastcontinuousforthingsthathappenedrepeatedly, especiallywhentheywereirritatinghabits: Compare: Whenshewaslittlesheusedto pick hernose Whenshewaslittleshewasalwayspickinghernose
8. Puttingitalltogether Forstylisticreasons, whenwe describe pasthabitsorrepeatedactionswetendto use a mixture of usedto, wouldorthepast simple (withfrequencyadverbs). Usedtoandwouldmakeclearthatitwassomethingthathappenedregularly, and give a sense of nostalgia
