Past Tense Exercises

How well do you know the past tense? Work out the past tense exercises given in this article and check the answers to find out.

Past Tense Exercises with Answers

Given below are a few exercises you can try out to test your understanding of the past tense and its different forms.

Exercise 1 – Identify the past tense form 

Read the following sentences given below and identify the past tense form used.

1. The aeroplane took off at 7:30 P.M.
2. Annie drank espresso in the morning.
3. Irin was reading Tintin.
4. The children were playing hide and seek.
5. Sunny had done his task before the teacher came.
6. I had seen Raj five years before.
7. I was getting worried about your health.
8. The child had been crying for hours.
9. They had written the letter before the postman came.
10. She left school last year.

Answers for Exercise 1

1. Simple Past Tense
2. Simple Past Tense
3. Past Continuous Tense
4. Past Continuous Tense
5. Past Perfect Tense
6. Past Perfect Tense
7. Past Continuous Tense
8. Past Perfect Continuous Tense
9. Past Perfect Tense
10. Simple Past Tense

Exercise 2 – Fill in the blanks 

Read the sentences and fill in the blanks with the correct form of the past tense.

1. We ____ FIFA all night. (was watching/were watching)
2. I ___ out with my friends. (went/go)
3. Tim ____  towards the field. (was walking/were walking)
4. The flight ___ a few minutes back. (left/leave)
5. The teacher ___ us about dinosaurs. (teach/taught)
6. We ____ to Las Vegas last week. (drove/drive)
7. The actress ___ next to the actor. (stand/stood)
8. The thief ____ into the house last night. (break/broke)
9. I ___a trophy for the competition on the last day. (receive/received)
10. The boy ___  chess last night. (was playing/were playing)
11. I ___  Rahim before he came. (has seen/had seen)
12. I ___ the movie last night. (had watched/has watched)
13. The opponent ___well. (play/played)
14. Adrian __ all the biscuits. (ate/eaten)
15. Ashok ___ the roof when he fell off. (was mending/were mending)

Answers for Exercise 2

1. Were watching
2. Went
3. Was walking
4. Left
5. Taught
6. Drove
7. Stood
8. Broke
9. Received
10. Was
11. Had seen
12. Had watched
13. Played
14. Ate
15. Was mending