Simple Past digunakan untuk membicarakan tindakan atau situasi yang terjadi di masa lalu. Tense ini juga disebut Past Simple.
Struktur dasar:
subject + past form of the verb
Contoh:
I visited Berlin last week.
1. Actions Finished in the Past
Simple Past digunakan untuk tindakan yang sudah selesai di masa lalu, baik terjadi sekali maupun berulang.
Contoh:
I visited Berlin last week.
Andrew watched TV yesterday.
My friends went to Paris a week ago.
My parents ate a lot of junk food when they were young.
2. Series of Completed Actions in the Past
Simple Past juga digunakan untuk serangkaian tindakan yang terjadi secara berurutan di masa lalu.
Contoh:
First I got up, then I had breakfast.
Contoh cerita:
On Sunday my brother and I went to a lake.
There we met our friends.
We swam in the warm water and played volleyball in the afternoon.
Too bad that we had to go home in the evening.
We didn't want to go to school on Monday.
3. Bersama Past Progressive (Past Continuous)
Simple Past sering digunakan bersama Past Progressive.
Fungsinya untuk menunjukkan bahwa satu tindakan yang sedang berlangsung di masa lalu terganggu oleh tindakan lain.
Aturannya:
| Tindakan | Tense |
|---|---|
| aksi yang sedang berlangsung | Past Progressive |
| aksi yang mengganggu | Simple Past |
Contoh
They were playing cards when the telephone rang.
Urutan kejadian:
- mereka sedang bermain kartu
- telepon berbunyi
While Dennis was reading outside, it started to rain.
Urutan kejadian:
- Dennis sedang membaca
- hujan mulai turun
Ringkasan Penggunaan Simple Past
Simple Past digunakan untuk:
- tindakan yang sudah selesai di masa lalu
- rangkaian kejadian di masa lalu
- tindakan yang mengganggu aksi lain yang sedang berlangsung di masa lalu
Contoh:
She visited London last year.
We watched a movie yesterday.
They were playing football when it started to rain.