Tense Detective
Find the mistake:
She go to school by bus every day.
She goes to school by bus every day.
Complete:
My sister ________ (play) badminton every Saturday.
plays
Choose the correct sentence:
A. She is going to school every day.
B. She goes to school every day.
B
Make a question for this answer:
Yes, I do. I play basketball every weekend.
Do you play basketball every weekend?
Complete:
It is 7 p.m. I am in my bedroom. I ________ (do) my homework.
am doing
Find the mistake:
I was watched TV when my mother called me.
I was watching TV when my mother called me.
Complete:
Look! The students ________ (run) across the field.
are running
Which sentence describes something happening right now?
A. Tom plays football every Sunday.
B. Tom played football yesterday.
C. Tom is playing football now.
D. Tom was playing football now.
C
Make a question for this answer:
She was studying in her bedroom.
Where was she studying?
Complete:
Yesterday at 7 p.m., I ________ (do) my homework.
was doing
Find the mistake:
They didn't went to the museum yesterday.
They didn't go to the museum yesterday.
Complete:
We ________ (have) dinner when the lights suddenly went out.
were having
Which sentence is correct?
A. I was sleeping when the phone rang.
B. I slept when the phone was ringing.
C. I was slept when the phone rang.
A
Make a question for this answer:
They went to Bali last holiday.
Where did they go last holiday?
I ________ (walk) home when I ________ (see) a cat stuck in a tree.
was walking / saw
Find TWO mistakes:
While I walked home, it was started to rain.
While I was walking home, it started to rain.
Complete both verbs:
When I ________ (arrive) at school yesterday, my friends ________ (wait) for me.
arrived / were waiting
Pay attention to this paragraph.
Hi Nico,
Thanks for your email. Now I can tell you about myself. At the moment I am sitting in my bedroom in my flat. I am live here with my grandparents. I’ve got lots of friends but they doesn’t come to the flat very often. We usually meets in town. Today it is snowing outside, so I am staying at home.
The CORRECT sentence from the paragraph is ....
I am sitting in my bedroom in my flat.
Your friend says:
“I was watching a movie at 8 p.m. yesterday.”
Ask a question to find out what movie they watched.
What movie were you watching at 8 p.m. yesterday?
How many sentence(s) DOES NOT use the past simple and past continuous CORRECTLY?
Last holiday, we were going to Bali and visited many beautiful places. While we were swimming at the beach, it suddenly started to rain. My brother was taking pictures when a big wave hitted him. Even though the weather was changing, we still were having a great time.
3
Find the mistake and explain why it is wrong:
I am understanding the materials, but I don't want to explain to you.
❌ am understanding → ✅ understand
"understand" is generally a stative verb, so we normally use the simple present.
Complete the sentence with the correct forms:
Yesterday afternoon, I (go) ... to visit The Parker family. When I (get) ... there around two o’clock, Mrs. Parker (be) ... in the yard. She (plant) ... flowers in the garden. Mr.Parker (be) ... in the garage. While Mr.Parker (fix)... the oil in the car, the children (play) ... with a ball in the yard.
went, got, was, was planting, was, was fixing, were playing
While Mrs. Emerson read the boy a story, he fell asleep, so he was closing the book and quietly tiptoed out of the room.
WHICH verb DOES NOT use the past tense and past continuous CORRECTLY?
read, was closing
You know that your friend normally walks to school, but today you see them on a bus.
Ask the reason.
Why are you taking the bus today?
Which sentences use the INCORRECT past simple and past continuous tense?
A. Brandon was eating his breakfast when the mailman arrived.
B. I got a package in the mail. When I opened it, I found a surprise.
C. My sister was playing with her doll, when the phone was ringing.
D. I didn’t want to go the zoo because it was raining.
C