Past simple or the Past continuous

Exercise 1: Complete the sentences with the past simple or the past continuous form the verbs.
1. I (switch off ) ___________ the computer because it (make)___________ a strange noise.
2. My dad (listen)___________ to classical music when I (arrive)___________ home from school.
3. We (play)___________ video games when my mum ,(say)___________ ‘Turn the volume down!’
4. My cousin (meet)___________ his wife, Bianca, while he (live)___________ in Italy.
5. My little sister (draw)___________ a picture while I (study)___________ for my French exam.
6. While they (try)___________ to fix the computer, all the lights (go out)___________.
7. When we (leave)___________ school yesterday, it (pour)___________ with rain.
8. When you (see)___________ Paul, he (wear)___________ a black jacket?
9. I (try)___________ to log on when the WiFi (stop)___________ working.
10. While Dad (print)___________ an article, the printer (run out)___________ of paper.
11. I (make)___________ my dinner at 8 o’clock last night.
12. Joe and Sam (use)___________ the wrong program in IT yesterday.
13. Who was that guy you (dance)___________ with at the party?
14. Paula (come)___________ home from school when she saw an accident.
15. In 1999 my father (live)___________ in Dublin. That’s where he met my mother.
16. He (open)___________ the box when he cut his finger.
17. This time last week, we (visit)___________ my grandmother.
18. I (sit)___________ at the back of the classroom so I couldn’t see the screen.
19. Andrew (insert)___________ a photo into his document when the teacher stopped the class.
20. I (start)___________ to do my homework when my friend sent me a message.
II. Choose the correct answer:
1. I listened / was listening to the radio when I heard / was hearing this fantastic song.
2. When the teacher said / was saying ‘Stop!’, I still tried / was still trying to finish the last question.
3. I feel really silly! While I danced / was dancing, I fell / was falling and broke / was breaking my
elbow.
4. Tim played / was playing a computer game when his mum called / was calling him for lunch.
5. I looked / was looking for a file on my memory stick when I noticed / was noticing there was a virus.
6. Ron found / was finding a really interesting website about dance music while he surfed / was
surfing the internet.
7. My mum had / was having breakfast near the computer when she spilled / was spilling her cup of coffee
on the keyboard.
8. When you saw / were seeing me yesterday, I didn’t go / wasn’t going to school, I went / was going to
the doctor’s – I felt terrible.
9. How many pictures did you take / were you taking while you travelled / were travelling around
Ireland?
10. Why did you chat / were you chatting to Philip while I tried / was trying to tell you something really
important?
11. When we watched/ were watching TV, Dad was arriving/ arrived home.
12. We weren’t having/ didn’t have dinner when you called us.
13. What did they do/ were they doing when the light went out/ was going out?
14. What was Max doing/ did Max do when you saw/ was seeing him?
15. I found my toy when I tidied / I was tidying my room.
16. Grandpa found/ was finding some old coins when he was working in the garden.
17. When the children were visiting/ visited the zoo, an elephant escaped/ was escaping.
18. What was you doing/ were you doing when the storm started/ was starting?
19. Kate was having / had dinner and then she did/ was doing her homework
20. While we were cleaning/ we cleaned the house, we broke / were breaking some glasses.
Exercise 3: Complete the sentences with the past simple or the past continuous form the verbs.
1. Peter ___________ (play) a video game when his brother, Jack, ___________ (enter) the room.
2. I ___________ (study) for my English test when my mother ___________ (come) home from work.
3. Emma ___________ (wash) the dishes when the telephone ___________ (ring).
4. I ___________ (ate) a sandwich while my parents ___________ (drink) coffee.
5. I ___________ (watch) a DVD when my cat ___________ (jump) on me.
6. I ___________ (not hear) the thunder during the storm last night because I ___________ (sleep)
7. It (be) ___________ beautiful yesterday when we ___________ (go) for a walk in the park. The sun
___________ (shine). The birds ___________ (sing).
8. My brother and sister ___________ (talk) anout something when I ___________ (walk) into the room.
9. Tom ___________(go) to his friend’s house, but the boys ___________ (not be) there. They
___________ (play) soccer in the vacant lot down the street.
10. The little boy ___________ (fall) asleep while his mother ___________ (read) him a story.
11. I really ___________ (enjoy) my holiday last January. While it ___________ (snow) in Iowa, the sun
___________ (shine) in Floria.
12. It ___________ (snow) when I ___________ (leave) home this morning.
13. It was a sunny afternoon and people ___________ (sit) on the grass in the park. Then suddenly it
___________ (start) to rain.
14. My brother ___________ (talk) on the phone when I arrived, but when he ___________ (see) me, he
___________ (finish) the call. Perhaps he thought that I ___________ (listen) to his conversation.
15. We ___________ (climb) the wall when the gardener ___________ (see) us.
16. Susan ___________ (play) the piano while Mary ___________ (sing)
17. ___________ (you/ listen) to the teacher when she ___________ (explain) this exercise?
18. Linda ___________ (have) a beautiful dream when the alarm clock ___________ (ring).
Exercise 4: Choose the correct answer
1. The Smiths aren’t painting/ weren’t painting their house last weekend
2. Tom cleaned/ was cleaning the living room when Jane arrived
3. Did/ Were the students writing an essay in class this morning?
4. Frank was fixing/ fixed his car when his mobile rang
5. Mark didn’t wear/ wasn’t wearing a coat when it started to rain.
6. He is/ was driving to work this morning when Anna called.
7. While my parents were working/ was working, I was studying at home
8. I walked/ was walking home when I tripped/ was tripping and fell
9. At 8 o’clock last night, we were having/ had dinner at a Chinese restaurant.
Exercise 5 : Complete the gaps in Past Simple or Past Continuous
1. We ______________ to the cinema yesterday. (to go)
2. I ______________ my homework for the whole evening yesterday. (to do)
3. Emily ______________ the piano at 4 p.m yesterday. (to play)
4. When John came home, his little brother ______________ TV. (to watch)
5. They ______________ a new house last month. (to buy)
6. We ______________ our relatives in the USA two years ago. (to visit)
7. As Sophie ______________ (walk) up Regent Street, she ______________ (meet) an old friend from
college.
8. Who ______________ (you/ speak) to on the phone when I ______________ (come) in?
9. Mary ______________ (read) in bed when she ______________ (hear) a strange noise downstairs.
10. The fireman ______________ (rescue) a 75-year-old woman who ______________ (be) trapped on the
second floor of the burning building.
11. When I ______________ (open) the door, two people ______________ (stand) there.
12. Your package ______________ (arrive) while we ______________ (have) dinner.
13. Gran ______________ (do) really well when I ______________ (see) her yesterday.
14. The teacher ______________ (ask) me a question while I ______________ (look) out of the window
15. We ______________ (not drive) very fast when the police officer ______________ (stop) us.
16. While I ______________ (drive), I ______________ (have) an accident.
17. Kate ______________ (have) dinner and then she ______________ (do) her homework.
18. The thieves ______________ (hide) in the kitchen when the police ______________ (come) in.
19. Sam ______________ (plan) a party and then he ______________ (phone) his friends.
20. While we ______________ (clean) the house, we ______________ (break) some glasses.
21. Alan ______________ (look) out of the window when he ______________ (see) a UFO.