The Past Continuous Tense

The Past Continuous Tense

The Past Continuous refers to an a continuing action or state, the “duurvorm”, in
Dutch.
In this small powerpoint I will explain what the past continuous is and how to make a
sentence with it.

What is it?
If you want to make clear that something is going on for a while you use the past
continuous.

E.g.
We waren aan het zingen.
 We were singing.

Ik zat te schreeuwen.
 I was screaming.

Singing and screaming are things that go on for a while in this case, so it is past
continuous.

How do you make it?
You’ve had the present continuous right? How do you make the present continuous?
 That one is made of a form of to be + form with -ing

As in :
 I am dancing.

The Past Continuous is very similar, but instead of a present form of to be you use
the past form.

I am -> I was
He/she/it is -> he/she/it was
We are -> We were
They are -> They were

So when with you get:
 I was dancing.
 We were dancing.

So, to sum it up:
The present continuous is used for something that continues for a while in the
present, it is made by using a present form of to be + form with -ing.
 I am singing.
 We are singing.

The past continuous is used for something that continues for a while in the past, it is
made by using a past form of to be + form with -ing.
 I was singing.
 We were singing.