Simple Past Tense

• Use simple past for actions finished at a specific past time.
• Form regular verbs with -ed; learn common irregular past forms.
• Use did/didn't + base verb in questions and negatives.
• Spot signal words: yesterday, last week, ago, in 2023.

Level 1 — Regular verbs

walk → walked, play → played, clean → cleaned, stop → stopped

Level 2 — Irregular verbs (learn by heart)

Level 3 — Uses

• Finished action: We visited the Red Fort last Sunday.
• Past habit: Grandmother told stories every evening.

Level 4 — Questions and negatives

Did you finish homework? She didn't go to the mela.

Rule: After didn't, always use base form — didn't go ✓, didn't went ✗

NCERT anchor: Marigold 4 story narratives; CBSE Class 4 — completed actions with time markers

Change to past: Priya ___ (write) a letter last night.

Step 1 — **Last night** → simple past.
Step 2 — write → irregular **wrote**.
Answer: Priya **wrote** a letter last night.

Fix: He didn't went home.

Step 1 — After didn't, use base verb.
Step 2 — went → **go**.
Answer: He **didn't go** home.

• Past of run? (ran)
• Correct: He goed / He went?
• Past of play and eat?
• Stretch: Write three sentences about what you did last Diwali — use at least one irregular verb.

Revision tip: Make flashcards: base verb on front, past on back — test ten irregular verbs daily.

Open the Practice tab for graded questions on Simple Past Tense.