USE OF PAST SIMPLE

The past simple is used to express:

1. A finished action in the past

We met in 2000
I went to Boston last week
Jhon left two minutes ago

2. Actions that follow each other in a story

Mary walked into the room and stopped. She listened carefully
She heard a noise coming from behind the curtain. She threw the curtain open, and then she saw......

3. A past situation or habit

When I was a child, we lived in a small house by the sea. Every day I walked for miles on the beach with my dog.

NOTE: this use is often expressed with used to
We used to live in a small house..... I used to walk for miles......

INTRODUCTION TO PAST TENSES

We use different past tenses to focus on different moments and periods of time in the past. The tense we use depends on whether the action or event is a past habit or state, whether it is completed, the duration of an action or event, and the order we use to recall the action or events.

Look at the diagram:

When Andrea arrived home at 8:00 last night
5:00              6:00              7:00              8:00              9:00
                                                                 ___________
                                                     .......................         

____________ Tim cooked dinner

....................... Tim was cooking dinner
                        
                        Tim had cooked dinner