Grammar Talks A1-23 Past Tense

SEA Travels -Thailand and Laos

Abidemi talks about her trip to Southeast Asia, where she started her trip in Thailand before moving on to Laos.
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Todd: Abidemi, what did you do for summer break?

Abidemi: For summer break, I went to visit some countries in Asia.

Todd: Oh, what countries?

Abidemi: I visited Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Myanmar.

Todd: Oh, great. What did you do in each country?

Abidemi: In Thailand, I was there for about a week. I ate a lot of delicious food and I met a lot of many nice people. I loved Thailand, so I hope to return again.

Todd: What foods did you eat?

Abidemi: I don’t remember the names but I just remembered that they were all good. (Laughter)

Todd: Thai food is so good.

Abidemi: Yes.

Todd: Did you go anymore in Thailand like the beach or the forest?

Abidemi: I was more interested in nature, so I traveled from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and Chang Rai, and I went trekking and rode elephants. So that was one of the highlights of my trip.

Todd: Oh nice. How long was the trek?

Abidemi: The trek was about a day. It was a trek for 2, 3 hours but then we also stayed overnight in a community in the hills. And then the next day, we trekked for a little bit to come back to the city.

Todd: Nice. So was Thailand the first stop?

Abidemi: Yes. It was my first stop. It was supposed to be the shortest stop but I loved it so much that I spent more time there.

Todd: After Thailand, where did you go?

Abidemi: From Thailand, I moved on by land to Laos.

Todd: And what did you do in Laos?

Abidemi: In Laos, I mainly was in the northern part of the country, and I went zip-lining.

Todd: Oh fun!

Abidemi: It was fun. So—

Todd: So zip-lining is going flying from tree to tree?

Abidemi: That’s correct. So that was about two days’ worth of zip-lining, and we stayed overnight in a big tree house.

Todd: Oh, how fun.

Abidemi: It was quite an experience.

Todd: Nice.

Abidemi: I really enjoyed it.

Past Tense

Point 1: We use the simple past to talk about completed events.
  1. We watched a really good movie.
  2. I went to Nepal for a year.
  3. I played tennis when I was a kid.
  4. They bought a new house.
Point 2Affirmative sentences use the past tense form of the verb, which often is an -ed ending.
  1. He stayed home and studied.
  2. He worked late last night.
  3. She cooked a big dinner.
  4. He washed and ironed the clothes.
Point 3: Many verbs have an irregular form that is not an -ed ending, but rather a special spelling.
  1. I met Joe last night. (meet)
  2. We had dinner at the new cafe. (have)
  3. We ate their pasta. (eat)
  4. Later, we saw a movie. (see)
  5. It made me cry! (make)
  6. He bought dinner, so I paid for the movie. (buy/pay)
Point 4: For WH questions, use did after the question word.
  • What did you do on the weekend?
    • I stayed home and studied.
  • Where did Roy go on the weekend?
    • He went to Devon.
  • Who did you meet?
    • I met Susan.
Point 5: For Yes / No questions, we use did to start the question, and did in short answers.
  • Did you go out on Saturday?
    • Yes, I did go out.
    • No, I didn’t go out.
  • Did you see Roy?
    • Yes, I did.
    • No, I didn’t.
Point 6: For negative statements, just add did not or didn’t before the base verb.
  1. I did not have time to go to the party.
  2. I didn't have time to go to the party.
  3. She did not like her dinner.
  4. She didn't like her dinner.
  5. The trains did not leave on time.
  6. The trains didn't leave on time.
Answer the following questions about the interview.

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