Past Continuous Tense
Past Continuous Tense digunakan untuk menyatakan aksi yang sedang berlangsung di masa lampau, sering kali diinterupsi oleh aksi lain, atau untuk menggambarkan suasana/waktu tertentu di masa lalu.
Dalam tense ini, digunakan was/were diikuti oleh Verb-ing. Contoh: She was cooking when I arrived artinya “Dia sedang memasak saat saya tiba.”
Berikut panduan penggunaan was/were sesuai subjek:
| Subjek | To be (lampau) | Contoh |
|---|---|---|
| I / He / She / It | was | He was reading |
| You / We / They | were | They were playing |
Structure:
| Type | Pattern |
|---|---|
| Positive | Subject + was/were + Verb-ing |
| Negative | Subject + was/were not + Verb-ing |
| Question | Was/Were + Subject + Verb-ing? |
Examples:
- I was watching TV at 9 p.m.
Saya sedang menonton TV pukul 9 malam.
- They were not sleeping when I called.
Mereka tidak sedang tidur saat saya menelepon.
- Was she reading when you came?
Apakah dia sedang membaca saat kamu datang?
- We were walking home (at that moment).
Kami sedang berjalan pulang (saat itu).
- The students were talking during the test.
Para siswa sedang berbicara saat ujian.
Notes:
Past Continuous digunakan untuk:
- Aksi yang sedang berlangsung di masa lalu: I was working at 10 p.m.
- Aksi yang terganggu oleh aksi lain (Simple Past): She was studying when the phone rang.
- Deskripsi suasana atau latar waktu: It was raining and people were shouting.
Keterangan waktu umum: at 7 p.m., when, while, all night, during.