The Past Simple

Hello learners!

In this post we are going to revise a new tense that we studied in class: Past Simple. By now you must know the past of the verb "to be" and the forms there was and there were, as well as the past simple of regular and irregular verbs. I also explained to you the different pronunciations of the regular past suffix "-ed".  

Now, look at the following structures as a summary of what I taught you in class.

REGULAR VERBS

Affirmative: Subject + Infinitive-ED (e.g. I walk - I walked)

Negative: Subject + DIDN'T + Infinitive (e.g. I don't walk - I didn't walk)

Interrogative: DID + Subject + Infinitive (e.g. Do you walk? - Did you walk?)

Short Answer: Yes, I did. / No, I didn't.

IRREGULAR VERBS

Affirmative: Subject + Irregular past form (e.g. I go - I went)

Negative: Subject + DIDN'T + Infinitive (e.g. I don't go - I didn't go)

Interrogative: DID + Subject + Infinitive (e.g. Do you go? - Did you go?)

Remember that these key words usually go with past simple:

AGO I lived in Sevilla five years ago

LAST My parents went to Portugal last week

YESTERDAY I saw Peter in the park yesterday

IN She was born in 1997

¡Hola estudiantes!

En este post vamos a revisar otro tiempo que hemos estudiado en clase: pasado simple. A estas alturas ya debéis conocer el pasado del verbo to be  y las formas de there was / there were (había), así como el pasado simple de los verbos regulares e irregulares. También os expliqué las diferentes pronunciaciones del sufijo pasado regular"-ed".
Ahora, observad las siguientes estructuras como un resumen de lo que os enseñé en clase.

VERBOS REGULARES

Afirmativa: Sujeto + Infinitivo-ED (ej. I walk - I walked)

Negativa: Sujecto + DIDN'T + Infinitivo (ej. I don't walk - I didn't walk)

Interrogativa: DID + Sujecto + Infinitivo (ej. Do you walk? - Did you walk?)

Short Answer: Yes, I did. / No, I didn't.

VERBOS IRREGULARES

Afirmativa: Sujeto + pasado irregular (ej. I go - I went)

Negativa: Sujecto + DIDN'T + Infinitivo (ej. I don't go - I didn't go)

Interrogativa: DID + Sujeto + Infinitivo (ej. Do you go? - Did you go?)

Recuerda que estas palabras clave van con el pasado simple:

AGO                     I lived in Sevilla five years ago

LAST                   My parents went to Portugal last week

YESTERDAY     I saw Peter in the park yesterday

IN                        She was born in 1997

For practice:

Exercise1, Exercise2, Exercise3, Exercise4.

The Present Simple & The Present Continuous

Hi you learners!

Last week we talked about the differences between the present simple and the present continuous. We saw the main difference laid on the fact that the present simple is used for habits and daily routines whereas the present continuous is for things that are happening at the moment of speaking. But I also told you there were some other uses that I'm leaving for you in this post.

Clic on the table to enlarge.

The Present Simple is used for

(1) habits and daily routines:
I walk to school everyday; Tom always gets up early in the morning.
(2) permanent states and true facts:

We are Spanish; The sun rises in the east.
(3) future action set by a timetable or schedule:
The film starts at 7.25 pm.; The art exhibition closes on July 12.

The Present Continuous is used for
(1) actions happening at the moment of speaking:
I'm walking to school now; She's having a shower at the moment.
(2) temporary actions:
We're learning French this year; They're building a new school here.
(3) arrangements for the near future:
I'm going to the cinema this evening; Anna's travelling to New Jersey next weekend.

Don't forget about stative verbs. These verbs are usually only used in the Present Simple, not in the continuous form. Examples of stative verbs are those denoting state (be, cost, mean, suit), possession (have, have got, own, possess, belong), senses (see, hear, feel, smell, taste), feelings (love, like, enjoy, hate, hope, want, regret, wish, prefer) and brain work (believe, think, understand, notice, realise, know).

¡Hola alumnos!

La semana pasada hablamos sobre las diferencias entre el presente simple y el presente continuo. Vimos que la diferencia principal está en el hecho de que el presente simple se utiliza para los hábitos y las rutinas diarias, mientras que el presente continuo es para las cosas que están sucediendo en el momento de hablar. Pero también os dije que había algunos otros usos que ahora voy a poner aquí.

El Present Simple se usa para...
(1) hábitos y rutinas diarias:
I walk to school everyday; Tom always gets up early in the morning.
(2) estados permanentes y hechos reales:
We are Spanish; The sun rises in the east.
(3) acción futura en horarios y programas:
The film starts at 7.25 pm.; The art exhibition closes on July 12.

El Present Continuous es para...
(1) acciones que ocurren en el momento de hablar:
I'm walking to school now; She's having a shower at the moment.
(2) acciones temporales incompletas:
We're learning French this year; They're building a new school here.
(3) planes a corto plazo y citas oficiales:
I'm going to the cinema this evening; Anna's travelling to New Jersey next weekend.

Que no se os olvide los verbos estativos. Estos verbos son utilizados normalmente en el Present Simple, nunca en las formas continuas. Ejemplos de verbos estativos son los que expresan estado (be, cost, mean, suit), posesión (have, have got, own, possess, belong), los relacionados con los sentidos (see, hear, feel, smell, taste), sentimientos (love, like, enjoy, hate, hope, want, regret, wish, prefer) y la mente(believe, think, understand, notice, realise, know).

For practice:

Exercise 1, Exercise 2, Exercise 3, Exercise 4

The verb 'to Have Got'

Hello!

In class, we studied the verb 'have got'. You know that you must remember that the form for the third person singular of the verb is has got. Below, in the Spanish section, I'll leave you a summary chart. Remember that this verb indicates possession and we use the verb 'to be' for the following expressions:

tener hambre/sed (to be hungry / thirsty)
tener frío/calor (to be cold / hot)

tener suerte (to be lucky)
tener años (to be years old)

The short answers are formed with the subject pronoun plus have/has for the affirmative and haven't/hasn't for the negative. For example:
Have you got a brother ?  - Yes, I have. / No, I haven't.
Has Peter got a car? - Yes, he has. / No, he hasn't.

Don't forget got but never use it in short answers. Look at the following examples:
Mary has got long hair (Mary's got long hair): María tiene el pelo largo.
You have got a small mouth (You've got a small mouth): Tienes la boca pequeña.
Has your sister got a boyfriend? : ¿Tu hermana tiene novio?
Yes, she has. : Sí, lo tiene.
No, she hasn't. : No, no tiene.

See you soon!

¡Hola!
Vimos en clase el verbo tener en inglés, have got. Ya sabéis que debéis tener en cuenta que en la tercera persona del singular (he, she, it) el verbo cambia a has got. Aquí os dejo el esquema resumen.

Recordad que este verbo indica posesión (possession), y que se utiliza el verbo 'to be' para las siguientes expresiones:

tener hambre/sed (to be hungry / thirsty)
tener frío/calor (to be cold / hot)
tener suerte (to be lucky)
tener años (to be years old)

Las short answers se forman con el pronombre sujeto más have/has en la afirmativa o haven't/hasn't en la negativa. Por ejemplo:

Have you got a brother ?
Yes, I have. / No, I haven't.

Has Peter got a car?
Yes, he has. / No, he hasn't.
No os olvidéis del got, pero nunca lo pongáis en las short answers. Mirad los siguientes ejemplos:

Mary has got long hair (Mary's got long hair): María tiene el pelo largo.
You have got a small mouth (You've got a small mouth): Tienes la boca pequeña.
Has your sister got a boyfriend? : ¿Tu hermana tiene novio?
Yes, she has. : Sí, lo tiene.
No, she hasn't. : No, no tiene.

¡Nos vemos!


Practice:
Exercise1, Exercise2, Exercise3.

Present simple of the verb 'to Be'

Hello learners:

We have already revised the verb 'to be' in class. We saw the affirmative, negative and question forms as well as the short answers. Below, in the Spanish section you have a summary: If you can't see it well because it is too small, just click on the picture to enlarge it. Remember that in addition to 'ser, estar' the verb 'to be' can also imply the meaning of 'have' in these expressions:

I'm 12 years old (tengo 12 años)

Peter is hungry/thirsty (Pedro tiene hambre/sed)
The children are hot/cold (los niños tienen calor/frío)
You're lucky (tienes suerte)
And when referring to the weather, it translates 'hace':
It's windy in the coast (hace viento en la costa)
It's very hot today (hace mucha calor hoy)
And don't forget to put the subject before the verb, you know that in English it can't be omitted.
See you!

Ya hemos repasado en clase el verbo 'to be' (ser, estar). Vimos las formas de la afirmativa, la negativa, interrogativa y respuestas cortas (short answers). Aquí teneis un resumen.

Si no lo veis bien porque os salga muy pequeño, pinchad sobre el cuadro para que éste se agrande.

Recordad que además de ser o estar, el verbo 'to be' tiene el significado de tener en estas construcciones:

I'm 12 years old (tengo 12 años)

Peter is hungry/thirsty (Pedro tiene hambre/sed)

The children are hot/cold (los niños tienen calor/frío)

You're lucky (tienes suerte)

Cuando se habla del tiempo atmosférico (the weather), significa hacer:

It's windy in the coast (hace viento en la costa)

It's very hot today (hace mucha calor hoy)

Y que no se os olvide poner el sujeto delante del verbo, que en inglés ya sabéis no se puede omitir.

¡Nos vemos!

Practice:
Exercise1, Exercise2, Exercise3.