Past Continuous Tense Exercises and Worksheets

On this page, students will practice identifying, forming, and using the past continuous tense correctly through various sentence-based exercises. These activities will help reinforce when and how to use “was/were + verb-ing” structures in everyday contexts.

Let’s build your confidence with this useful and commonly used tense!

• Past Continuous Tense
• Past Tense
• Present Continuous Tense

Past Continuous Tense Worksheets

The Past Continuous Tense is used to describe actions that were happening at a specific moment in the past. It helps learners express what someone was doing at a certain time or when another action interrupted it. Understanding how to form and use this tense improves storytelling and overall fluency in English.

Past Continuous Tense Worksheet 1: Choose the correct option

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Answer:

1. Choose the correct option

a. Dad was taking a photo of me while I was singing at the party.
b. Tom was studying for his tests when I was visiting him.
c. Last night I was reading when the lights went out.
d. The boys were still playing video games at 3 a.m.
e. What were you doing at 9 p.m. last night?
f. Mark was breaking his leg while he was climbing.
g. On Saturday I was going to the cinema and then I was eating out.
h. Linda was going to bed when she heard a noise.
i. When you were arriving at the party, who was being there?
j. Sally was having lunch when Lucy was calling her.

2. Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verbs in brackets

a. The man fell off the ladder while he was cutting some branches.
b. Did you go to school yesterday?
c. My parents were sleeping when the telephone rang.
d. I wasn’t at home when my father arrived.
e. When the teacher entered the classroom everyone was working.
f. He was living in Japan when there was a tsunami.
g. When Lara arrived, her parents were waiting for her at the airport.

3. Read the sentences and correct the mistakes

a. It was a nice day. The sun was shining.
b. I started school in 2015.
c. Last summer we visited Rome.
d. Why were you crying when I came in?
e. At 11 p.m. we were sleeping.

Past Continuous Tense Worksheet 2: Choose the correct option

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Answer:

1. The boy was reading when the light went out.
2. The cats were sleeping when I came in.
3. Andrea was watching TV when I last saw her.
4. It was raining heavily when I went to sleep.
5. My brother was walking when I met him.
6. Mrs. Angela was drinking her coffee.
7. We were standing here when the teacher called us.
8. My mother was cooking our favorite food when I got home.
9. Ann was washing the dishes.
10. Hani was cleaning the classroom when I greeted her.

Past Continuous Tense Exercises

Past Continuous Tense Exercise 1: Fill in the blanks

Use the correct form of Past Continuous (was/were + verb-ing).

1. I ______ (watch) TV when you called.

2. She ______ (cook) dinner at 6 p.m.

3. They ______ (play) football yesterday afternoon.

4. We ______ (study) all night.

5. He ______ (drive) to work when the accident happened.

6. The cat ______ (sleep) on the sofa.

7. You ______ (not/listen) to me!

8. My parents ______ (travel) to Italy last summer.

9. I ______ (read) a book when it started to rain.

10. Sarah ______ (paint) a picture.

11. The kids ______ (run) around the park.

12. He ______ (not/do) his homework at 8 p.m.

13. We ______ (clean) the house all morning.

14. I ______ (write) an email when the power went out.

15. They ______ (have) lunch at noon.

16. She ______ (talk) to her friend when I arrived.

17. The teacher ______ (explain) the lesson.

18. My brother ______ (not/play) computer games.

19. You ______ (wait) for the bus at 7 o’clock.

20. It ______ (rain) heavily when we left.

Answer:

1. was watching
2. was cooking
3. were playing
4. were studying
5. was driving
6. was sleeping
7. were not listening
8. were traveling
9. was reading
10. was painting
11. were running
12. was not doing
13. were cleaning
14. was writing
15. were having
16. was talking
17. was explaining
18. was not playing
19. were waiting
20. was raining

Past Continuous Tense Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Choose the correct form.

1. I ______ reading when you called.
   a) was b) were c) am

2. They ______ sleeping during the storm.
   a) was b) were c) are

3. She ______ not listening to the teacher.
   a) was b) were c) is

4. We ______ playing chess yesterday.
   a) was b) were c) is

5. He ______ driving too fast.
   a) were b) was c) are

6. The dog ______ barking loudly last night.
   a) was b) were c) is

7. You ______ wearing a blue shirt.
   a) was b) were c) are

8. My mom ______ cooking dinner at 7 p.m.
   a) was b) were c) are

9. We ______ not paying attention.
   a) were b) was c) is

10. The students ______ studying for exams.
    a) were b) was c) is

11. He ______ playing guitar when I saw him.
    a) was b) were c) is

12. They ______ talking about the trip.
    a) were b) was c) are

13. I ______ cleaning my room.
    a) was b) were c) am

14. The children ______ jumping on the bed.
    a) were b) was c) is

15. She ______ not paying attention.
    a) was b) were c) is

16. We ______ having lunch when you arrived.
    a) was b) were c) is

17. He ______ waiting for the bus.
    a) were b) was c) are

18. They ______ laughing at the joke.
    a) were b) was c) is

19. I ______ wearing a new dress.
    a) was b) were c) am

20. The kids ______ running in the garden.
    a) were b) was c) is

Answer:

1. a) was
2. b) were
3. a) was
4. b) were
5. b) was
6. a) was
7. b) were
8. a) was
9. a) were
10. a) were
11. a) was
12. a) were
13. a) was
14. a) were
15. a) was
16. b) were
17. b) was
18. a) were
19. a) was
20. a) were

Past Continuous Tense Exercise 3: Practice with Past Continuous and Simple Past Tenses

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb (Past Continuous or Simple Past).

1. I ______ (read) a book when the phone ______ (ring).

2. She ______ (fall) asleep while she ______ (watch) TV.

3. They ______ (play) football when it suddenly ______ (start) to rain.

4. We ______ (have) dinner when the lights ______ (go) out.

5. He ______ (see) an accident while he ______ (drive) to work.

6. The children ______ (fight) when the teacher ______ (enter) the classroom.

7. While I ______ (walk) to school, I ______ (meet) my best friend.

8. She ______ (break) her leg while she ______ (ski).

9. We ______ (hear) a strange noise while we ______ (sleep).

10. They ______ (study) when their friends ______ (arrive).

11. I ______ (not/hear) the phone because I ______ (take) a shower.

12. While he ______ (fix) the car, he ______ (hurt) his hand.

13. She ______ (lose) her keys while she ______ (shop) at the mall.

14. The baby ______ (cry) when the dog ______ (bark) loudly.

15. We ______ (wait) for the bus when it ______ (start) to rain.

16. He ______ (listen) to music when I ______ (call) him.

17. I ______ (see) her while she ______ (cross) the street.

18. They ______ (cook) dinner when we ______ (arrive).

19. My mom ______ (find) an old photo while she ______ (clean) the attic.

20. I ______ (fall) asleep while I ______ (study) last night.

Answer:

1. was reading / rang
2. fell / was watching
3. were playing / started
4. were having / went
5. saw / was driving
6. were fighting / entered
7. was walking / met
8. broke / was skiing
9. heard / were sleeping
10. were studying / arrived
11. didn’t hear / was taking
12. was fixing / hurt
13. lost / was shopping
14. was crying / barked
15. were waiting / started
16. was listening / called
17. saw / was crossing
18. were cooking / arrived
19. found / was cleaning
20. fell / was studying

Past Continuous Tense Exercise 4: Choose the Correct Verb Form 

Choose the correct form of the verb. (Past Continuous vs. Simple Past)

1. I ______ (was reading / read) when the lights went out.

2. She ______ (watched / was watching) a movie when I arrived.

3. They ______ (played / were playing) soccer when it started to rain.

4. We ______ (ate / were eating) lunch when the phone rang.

5. He ______ (was driving / drove) fast when he saw the police.

6. My brother ______ (broke / was breaking) his leg while he was skiing.

7. The students ______ (were studying / studied) when the teacher entered.

8. I ______ (lost / was losing) my wallet while I was shopping.

9. She ______ (was sleeping / slept) when the alarm rang.

10. They ______ (talked / were talking) when the manager walked in.

11. He ______ (fell / was falling) down the stairs yesterday.

12. I ______ (was writing / wrote) an email when my computer crashed.

13. They ______ (met / were meeting) while they were traveling in Europe.

14. We ______ (were dancing / danced) when the lights turned off.

15. She ______ (called / was calling) you but you didn’t answer.

16. While I ______ (cooked / was cooking), my sister was setting the table.

17. They ______ (saw / were seeing) a shooting star while they were camping.

18. The dog ______ (barked / was barking) when I opened the door.

19. We ______ (sang / were singing) happily when it started to rain.

20. I ______ (was cleaning / cleaned) the room when I found an old photo.

Answer:

1. was reading
2. was watching
3. were playing
4. were eating
5. was driving
6. broke
7. were studying
8. lost
9. was sleeping
10. were talking
11. fell
12. was writing
13. met
14. were dancing
15. called
16. was cooking
17. saw
18. was barking
19. were singing
20. was cleaning

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Isabella Claire

Isabella Claire is a dedicated ESL teacher who has been with 7ESL since 2017. With years of classroom and online teaching experience, Isabella now serves as the Content Leader at 7ESL, overseeing lesson quality and ensuring engaging, accurate resources for English learners worldwide.

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