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Grammar Basics: Unit 12 – The Simple Past Tense Negation, Question Form (Solutions)

Posted on 2012/01/27
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Exercises: First, convert all sentences to negative form. Then, convert them to question form. Finally, convert them to negative question form.

Example:
It snowed all day. ==>

  • It didn’t snow all day.
  • Did it snow all day?
  • Didn’t it snow all day?

1. We watched TV for an hour.
We didn’t watch TV for an hour.
Did we watch TV for an hour?
Didn’t we watch TV for an hour?

2. The cat sat on my lap.
The cat didn’t sit on my lap.
Did the cat sit on my lap?
Didn’t the cat sit on my lap?

3. She baked a cake for Mary’s birthday.
She didn’t bake a cake for Mary’s birthday.
Did she bake a cake for Mary’s birthday?
Didn’t she bake a cake for Mary’s birthday?

4. I bought a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks.
I didn’t buy a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks.
Did I buy a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks?
Didn’t I buy a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks?

5. Lisa wrote a nice thank-you note to her aunt.
Lisa didn’t write a nice thank-you note to her aunt.
Did Lisa write a nice thank-you note to her aunt?
Didn’t Lisa write a nice thank-you note to her aunt?

6. We flew from Chicago to Seoul.
We didn’t fly from Chicago to Seoul.
Did we fly from Chicago to Seoul?
Didn’t we fly from Chicago to Seoul?

7. He took several pictures of the Grand Canyon.
He didn’t take several pictures of the Grand Canyon.
Did he take several pictures of the Grand Canyon?
Didn’t he take several pictures of the Grand Canyon?

8. She changed the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash.
She didn’t change the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash.
Did she change the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash?
Didn’t she change the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash?

9. The mechanic repaired the car last week.
The mechanic didn’t repair the car last week.
Did the mechanic repair the car last week?
Didn’t the mechanic repair the car last week?

10. At the campout, we cooked hot dogs for supper.
At the campout, we didn’t cook hot dogs for dinner.
Did we cook hot dogs for dinner at the campout?
Didn’t we cook hot dogs for dinner at the campout?

11. It rained yesterday and ruined our picnic.
It didn’t rain yesterday, and ruin our picnic.
Did it rain yesterday, and ruin our picnic?
Didn’t it rain yesterday, and ruin our picnic?

12. The teacher graded our tests and handed them back to us.
The teacher didn’t grade our tests and hand them back to us.
Did the teacher grade our tests and hand them back to us?
Didn’t the teacher grade our tests and hand them back to us?

13. Tom impatiently tapped his foot.
Tom didn’t tap his foot impatiently.
Did Tom tap his foot impatiently?
Didn’t Tom tap his foot impatiently?

14. Sam watered the plants every morning.
Sam didn’t water the plants every morning.
Did Sam water the plants every morning?
Didn’t Sam water the plants every morning?

15. We relaxed and listened to music after dinner.
We didn’t relax and listen to music after dinner.
Did we relax and listen to music after dinner?
Didn’t we relax and listen to music after dinner?

16. Kathleen lied to her mother, and got into trouble.
Kathleen didn’t lie to her mother and get into trouble.
Did Kathleen lie to her mother and get into trouble?
Didn’t Kathleen lie to her mother and get into trouble?

17. They went to a movie last weekend.
They didn’t go to a movie last weekend.
Did they go to a movie last weekend?
Didn’t they go to a movie last weekend?

18. I finished reading a good book yesterday.
I didn’t fishing reading a good book yesterday.
Did I finish reading a good book yesterday?
Didn’t I finish reading a good book yesterday?

19. My pencil lead broke, so I sharpened it again.
My pencil lead didn’t break, so I didn’t sharpen it again.
Did my pencil lead break? Did I sharpen it again?
Didn’t my pencil lead break? Didn’t I sharpen it again?

20. He came late for breakfast.
He didn’t come late for breakfast.
Did he come late for breakfast?
Didn’t he come late for breakfast?

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Grammar Basics: Unit 12 – The Simple Past Tense Negation, Question Form

Posted on 2012/01/26
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To form the negation of simple past, use

did not + V (infinitive form)

“did not” is often contracted to “didn’t”.

Examples:

John washed the car. ==> John did not (didn’t) wash the car.
We walked to school every day. ==> We did not (didn’t) walk to school every day.
Everyone laughed at the clown. ==> Everyone did not (didn’t) laugh at the clown.
The beautician combed her client’s long hair. ==> The beautician did not (didn’t) comb her client’s long hair.
He printed a receipt for me. ==> He did not (didn’t) print a receipt for me.

To form questions with simple past, use

Did S + V (infinitive form)…?

Examples:

John washed the car. ==> Did John wash the car?
We walked to school every day. ==> Did we walk to school every day?
Everyone laughed at the clown. ==> Did everyone laugh at the clown?
The beautician combed her client’s long hair. ==> Did the beautician comb her client’s long hair?
He printed a receipt for me. ==> Did he print a receipt for me?

It is also possible to put the negative form into question form:

Did not (Didn’t) S + V (infinitive form)…?

Examples:

John washed the car. ==> Didn’t John wash the car?
We walked to school every day. ==> Didn’t we walk to school every day?
Everyone laughed at the clown. ==> Didn’t everyone laugh at the clown?
The beautician combed her client’s long hair. ==> Didn’t the beautician comb her client’s long hair?
He printed a receipt for me. ==> Didn’t he print a receipt for me?

Note:

Usually this form (negative simple past question) is used when the person asking the question expects that the action was done. Thus, this form is expecting confirmation: Yes, S did….

Exercises: First, convert all sentences to negative form. Then, convert them to question form. Finally, convert them to negative question form.

Example:

It snowed all day. ==>

  • It didn’t snow all day.
  • Did it snow all day?
  • Didn’t it snow all day?

1. We watched TV for an hour.

2. The cat sat on my lap.

3. She baked a cake for Mary’s birthday.

4. I bought a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks.

5. Lisa wrote a nice thank-you note to her aunt.

6. We flew from Chicago to Seoul.

7. He took several pictures of the Grand Canyon.

8. She changed the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash.

9. The mechanic repaired the car last week.

10. At the campout, we cooked hot dogs for supper.

11. It rained yesterday and ruined our picnic.

12. The teacher graded our tests and handed them back to us.

13. Tom impatiently tapped his foot.

14. Sam watered the plants every morning.

15. We relaxed and listened to music after dinner.

16. Kathleen lied to her mother, and got into trouble.

17. They went to a movie last weekend.

18. I finished reading a good book yesterday.

19. My pencil lead broke, so I sharpened it again.

20. He came late for breakfast.

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Grammar Basics: Unit 11 – The Simple Past Tense (Solutions)

Posted on 2012/01/25
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Exercises: Use the proper simple past tense in the sentences below.

Example:

  • It _________ all day. (snow) ==> It snowed all day.

1. We watched TV for an hour.

2. The cat sat on my lap.

3. She baked a cake for Mary’s birthday.

4. I bought a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks.

5. Lisa wrote a nice thank-you note to her aunt.

6. We flew from Chicago to Seoul.

7. He took several pictures of the Grand Canyon.

8. She changed the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash.

9. The mechanic repaired the car last week.

10. At the campout, we cooked hot dogs for supper.

11. It rained yesterday and ruined our picnic.

12. The teacher graded our tests and handed them back to us.

13. Tom impatiently tapped his foot.

14. Sam watered the plants every morning.

15. We relaxed and listened to music after dinner.

16. Kathleen lied to her mother, and got into trouble.

17. They went to a movie last weekend.

18. I finished reading a good book yesterday.

19. My pencil lead broke, so I sharpened it again.

20. He came late for breakfast.

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Grammar Basics: Unit 11 – The Simple Past Tense

Posted on 2012/01/24
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The Simple Past is formed by putting –ed at the end of the verb:

Examples:

  • wash ==> washed
  • walk ==> walked
  • laugh ==> laughed
  • comb ==> combed
  • print ==> printed
  • John washed the car.
  • We walked to school every day.
  • Everyone laughed at the clown.
  • The beautician combed her client’s long hair.
  • He printed a receipt for me.

Words that end in a –y that is preceded by a consonant must use change the –y to an i before putting the –ed at the end:

Examples:

  • try ==> tried
  • cry ==> cried
  • study ==>studied
  • dry ==> dried
  • She tried to open the door.
  • The baby cried for a whole hour.
  • Steve studied all weekend for his test.
  • We dried fish on wire racks.

Words whose final syllable has a short vowel followed by a single consonant double the last consonant:

Examples:

  • stop ==> stopped
  • ban ==> banned
  • plan ==> planned
  • The policeman stopped the speeding car.
  • The teacher banned all cell phones from the classroom.
  • We planned to go on a picnic yesterday.

As with most languages, there are exceptions. Some verbs are irregular, and do not form the simple past according to the above rules. We have no choice but to memorize these verbs and their past tense. The following list is the 50 most common irregular English verbs. These verbs are listed in order of frequency: Number 1 is the most common, Number 2 is the second most common, etc. These 50 words make up 87% of irregular verb occurrence in English. The first 11 represent half of the occurrence of irregular verbs in English.

50 Most Common Irregular English Verbs

Rank Base Form (Past Tense, Past Participle)

1. say (said, said)
2. make (made, made)
3. go (went, gone)
4. take (took, taken)
5. come (came, come)
6. see (saw, seen)
7. know (knew, known)
8. get (got, got/gotten (US))
9. give (gave, given)
10. find (found, found)
11. think (thought, thought)
12. tell (told, told)
13. become (became, become)
14. show (showed, shown / showed)
15. leave (left, left)
16. feel (felt, felt)
17. put (put, put)
18. bring (brought, brought)
19. begin (began, begun)
20. keep (kept, kept)
21. hold (held, held)
22. write (wrote, written)
23. stand (stood, stood)
24. hear (heard, heard)
25. let (let, let)
26. mean (meant, meant)
27. set (set, set)
28. meet (met, met)
29. run (ran, run)
30. pay (paid, paid)
31. sit (sat, sat)
32. speak (spoke, spoken)
33. lie (lay, lain)
34. lead (led, led)
35. read (read, read)
36. grow (grew, grown)
37. lose (lost, lost)
38. fall (fell, fallen)
39. send (sent, sent)
40. build (built, built)
41. understand (understood, understood)
42. draw (drew, drawn)
43. break (broke, broken)
44. spend (spent, spent)
45. cut (cut, cut)
46. rise (rose, risen)
47. drive (drove, driven)
48. buy (bought, bought)
49. wear (wore, worn)
50. choose (chose, chosen)

Exercises: Use the proper simple past tense in the sentences below.

Example:

  • It _________ all day. (snow) ==> It snowed all day.

1. We _________ TV for an hour. (watch)

2. The cat _________ on my lap. (sit)

3. She _________ a cake for Mary’s birthday. (bake)

4. I _________ a pair of shoes and three pairs of socks. (buy)

5. Lisa _________ a nice thank-you note to her aunt. (write)

6. We _________ from Chicago to Seoul. (fly)

7. He _________ several pictures of the Grand Canyon. (take)

8. She _________ the baby’s diaper often to avoid diaper rash. (change)

9. The mechanic _________ the car last week. (repair)

10. At the campout, we _________ hot dogs for supper. (cook)

11. It _________ yesterday and _________ our picnic. (rain, ruin)

12. The teacher _________ our tests and _________ them back to us. (grade, hand)

13. Tom impatiently _________ his foot. (tap)

14. Sam _________ the plants every morning. (water)

15. We _________ and _________ to music after dinner. (relax, listen)

16. Kathleen _________ to her mother, and _________ into trouble. (lie, get)

17. They _________ to a movie last weekend. (go)

18. I _________ reading a good book yesterday. (finish)

19. My pencil lead _________, so I _________ it again. (break, sharpen)

20. He _________ late for breakfast. (come)

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