The Simple Past Tense is used to describe actions or events that happened and were completed at a specific time in the past. For example, 'I walked to school yesterday' shows an action that finished in the past.
The affirmative form of simple past tense follows the structure: Subject plus past verb plus object. Regular verbs add 'ed' to the base form, like walk becomes walked. Irregular verbs have special past forms that must be memorized, like go becomes went.
For negative sentences, use 'didn't' plus the base form of the verb. For questions, start with 'Did' followed by the subject and base verb. The be verb has special forms: use 'wasn't' or 'weren't' for negatives, and 'Was' or 'Were' to start questions.
Simple past tense is often used with specific time expressions that indicate when something happened in the past. Common expressions include yesterday, last week, two days ago, and specific years like 'in 2020'. These time markers help clarify that the action is completed.
Let's review with practice examples. Simple past tense uses regular verbs with 'ed' ending and irregular verbs with special forms. Remember to use 'didn't' for negatives and 'Did' for questions. Master these patterns and you'll communicate past events effectively in English!