3. Resumen

Importante

The Past Continuous. Affirmative

Para formar el Past Continuous, tras el sujeto, se usa el verbo TO BE en pasado (WAS/WERE) y un verbo en -ING:

Past Continuous Affirmative (PLAY)
I was playing we were playing
you were you were
he/she/it was they were
1- El Past Continuous (Pasado Continuo) se usa para hablar de una acción que se desarrollaba durante un periodo de tiempo en el pasado:
Yesterday at 10 o'clock, they were singing. (Ayer a las 10, ellos estaban cantando)
2- Este tiempo verbal puede usarse para indicar que dos o más acciones ocurrían a la vez en el pasado:
I was playing the guitar while my sister was studying. (Yo estaba tocando la guitarra mientras mi hermana estaba estudiando)

Importante

Past Continuous. Negative and Interrogative

Past Continuous Negative (PLAY) Past Continuous Interrogative (PLAY)
I wasn't playing we weren't playing (WH) Was I playing? (WH) Were we playing?
you weren't you weren't (WH) Were you (WH) Were you
he/she/it wasn't they weren't (WH) Was he/she/it (WH) Were they
Ej: I wasn't sleeping (Yo no estaba durmiendo) Ej: What were you doing? (¿Qué estabas haciendo?)

Por último, te dejamos ejemplos de respuestas cortas:

Were you sleeping? No, I wasn't. (¿Estabas durmiendo? No.)

Were they swimming? Yes, they were. (¿Estaban nadando? Sí.)

Importante

Past Simple or Past Continuous

El Past Simple y el Past Continuous pueden usarse juntos para hacer narraciones en pasado. El Past Simple nos indica que la acción está acabada, mientras que el Past Continuous nos describe una acción que estaba desarrollándose:

I was having a shower when you phoned. (Me estaba duchando cuando llamaste)

El Past Simple es una acción que ocurre en mitad de la acción que indica el Past Continuous. No sabemos si la acción expresada por el Past Continuous finalizó o continuó.

While the teacher was speaking, the bell rang. (Mientras el profesor estaba hablando, la campana sonó)

I was watching TV when my mum appeared. (Estaba viendo la TV cuando mi madre apareció)

Usamos las conjunciones when (cuando) con el Past Simple y while (mientras) con el Past Continuous:

While I was walking, I found a coin. (Mientras estaba caminando, me encontré una moneda)

When I saw her, she was dancing. (Cuando la vi, ella estaba bailando)