Past Progressive употребляется:
1. для выражения незаконченного, длительного действия, происходившего в какой-то момент или период в прошлом (обозначения времени at six o’clock, at noon, at midnight, at that moment, during, from 5 till 7 o’clock yesterday, the whole day, all day long, all the time, still).
At 10.00 I was having a bath.
2. для выражения двух длительных действий, которые происходили одновременно в течение одинакового промежутка времени.
While he was speaking to the teacher I was waiting for him.
Длительное действие в определенный момент может быть прервано одиночным действием в прошлом, выраженным Past Simple
John arrived w hen I was cooking supper.
3. Past Progressive от глагола to go (I was going) в сочетании с инфинитивом употребляется для выражения имевшего в прошлом намерения совершить действие. В этом случае имеет значение собирался, намеревался.
I was going to tell him about it, but he interrupted me.
Exercise 1. Say what you or other people were doing some time ago.
e.g. - The whole day yesterday I was busy. (write an article)
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1. On Sunday I was in the library. (prepare for one's exam)
2. At 11 a.m. on Saturday I was at the University. (write a test)
3. We were in the country on the weekend. (fish)
4. All day long yesterday I was out. (work in the garden)
5. At 7 o'clock yesterday evening we were still at the office. (have a meeting)
6. From 10 till 12 on Sunday Victor was busy. (repair the TV set)
7. At 10 a.m. yesterday I was at home. (clean the flat)
8. Yesterday afternoon we were at the stadium. (play football)
9. On Friday morning I was at work. (make an experiment)
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Exercise 2. Put the verbs in brackets into Past Progressive. Make them negative.
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1. She (cry) when I saw her.
2. At 8 o’clock on Tuesday evening the students of our group (have) a meeting.
3. They (go) to the recreation room to dance.
4. They (revise) for their preliminary in English.
5. We (have) a test at 2 p.m. yesterday.
6. He (cook) breakfast when I saw him.
7. At 7 sharp on Monday Kate (leave) the Institute.
8. At that moment Tom (hurry) to the theatre.
9. She (drill) a new grammar pattern during her lesson.
10. The pupils (work) in the language laboratory at that time yesterday.
11. Mary (read) when her friend came to see her.
12. When I went out into the garden the sun (shine) brightly.
Exercise 3. Make the sentences with the suitable adverbs.
during, at that moment, at that time, at.... o'clock, the whole
day, all day long, all night long, all the time, still
1.... the day we were speaking about this problem many times.
2.... the children were writing, and translating examples.
3.... I was buying a present for my friend at the shopping center.
4.... they were singing songs in the garden.
5.... my brother was watching TV and listening to the music.
6.... the child was crying.
7.... my sister was speaking to her boy-friend on the phone.
8.... these people were smoking at the office.
9.... our teacher was... correcting our mistakes.
10.... I was going to write an application.
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Exercise 4. Make up complex sentences.
e.g. play/talk to smb
1. have a bath/wash the dishes;
2. make tea/clean the car;
3. listen to the news/read the papers;
4. have a holiday/work hard;
5. write an article/do one's homework;
6. repair the tape-recorder/do the housework;
7. look through business papers/type;
8. have dinner/sweep the floor;
9. do shopping/sleep;
10. play the piano/have a rest;
11. revise a new material/write a report;
12. rain/sit in the living-room.
Exercise 5. Ask your partner what he/she was doing at this period of time.
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· 7.00-7.30 – did morning exercises;
· 8.00-8.30 – had breakfast;
· 8.30-9.30 – had a shower;
· 9.30-10.00 – watched TV;
· 11.00-12.00 – read magazines;
· 12.30-13.00 – cleaned his/her room;
· 13.30-14.00 – had dinner;
· 14.00-15.20 – slept;
· 16.00-18.00 – did shopping;
· 19.00-20.00 – went for a walk;
· 20.15-20.45 – talked on the phone.
Exercise 6. Ask and answer questions.
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1. 
Betty/dance with;
2. Jack/wait for;
3. They/listen to;
4. Mary/look for;
5. They/talk about;
6. The boss/speak to;
7. Kate/laugh at;
8. The girl/explain;
9. Daniel/play with;
10. The woman/pay attention to.
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Exercise 7. Use Past Progressive instead of the infinitives in brackets.
1. It (to rain) when we went out.
2. From the noise we heard it was clear that our neighbours' boy (to practice) the piano.
3. While he (to learn) to drive he had many accidents.
4. When we first met you (to study) English.
5. “Who you (to talk to) as I came in?” – “I (to talk) to my new secretary.”
6. My wife and I (to discuss) this problem when you came.
7. “Whose book you (to read)?”- “My sister's. I just (to begin) when you entered the room.”
8. While we were (to walk) someone came into the house and left this note.
9. Where he (to live) when you saw him last?
10. Why you (to fool around) with the computer?
11. He had a lot of doubts while he (to plan) his crime.
12. While George (to think) of the career that lay before him Annie also (to plan) some improvements in the house and (to guess) what else this new change might bring.
14. Tom felt he (to become) too emotional and the inspector (to get) suspicious about it.
15. “Brian (to plan) some tidying, he (not)? So perhaps he (to look for) something in the loft when you came and frightened, him.” – “And I (to look for) him.”
Exercise 8. Complete each sentences with a suitable form of the verbs using the Past Simple or the Past Progressive.
1. Where you (to be) yesterday? — I (to be) at home the whole day. Oh, I (to be) in the garden. I (to read) your book and (not to hear) the telephone.
2. What you (to do) at five o'clock yesterday? — I (to work) in the library. — I (to be) there, too, but I (not to see) you.
3. Nina (to celebrate) her birthday yesterday. Her room looked beautiful, there (to be) many flowers in it.
4. When I (to come) in, somebody (to play) the piano, two or three pairs (to dance).
5. What you (to do) at seven o'clock yesterday? — I (to have) supper.
6. When I (to come) home yesterday, I (to see) that all my family (to sit) round the table. Father (to read) a letter from my uncle.
7. We (to have) a postcard from them two days ago.
8. Yesterday I (to work) at my English from five till seven.
9. It (to rain) the whole day yesterday.
10. Where your sister (to be) now? — She (to be) in her room. She (to do) her homework.
11. Last night we (to go) to a cafe to meet our friends.
12. When she (to open) the door yesterday, a man (to stand) on the doorstep.
Exercise 9. Translate into English using the Past Progressive.
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1. Вчера с двенадцати до двух часов дня наши коллеги играли в теннис.
2. Тем временем, когда Катины родители смотрели телевизор, она готовила ужин.
3. В это время вчера наш начальник все еще рассказывал нам о своей собаке.
4. В то время, когда мы пили кофе и разговаривали, наши дети играли в соседней комнате.
5. Вчера в офисе мы все время получали факсы из разных городов.
6. Наш доктор вчера всю ночь работал. Он принимал людей в больнице.
7. В то время, когда мы обедали у наших друзей, их большая собака все время сидела под столом.
8. В половине восьмого вечера мы обедали. Во время обеда мы разговаривали о цветах в нашем саду.
9. Когда вчера утром я разговаривала с подругой по телефону, мои родители сидели на кухне.
10. Целый день мы покупали подарок маме на день рождения. Мы все время просили продавцов показать нам разные вещи.
11. Моя сестра весь вечер вчера учила английский.
12. Мы работали в саду, а мой брат слушал музыку все это время.
13. Когда я переводила статью, моя мама убирала квартиру.
14. Вчера Ирина играла на пианино весь вечер.
15. Мы были уверены, что в прошлое воскресенье с 5 до 7 он смотрел спортивную программу по телевидению.
Exercise 10. Put the verbs in brackets into a suitable form using the Past Progressive.
1. While I (answer) my teacher’s questions, my classmates (not to write) the right variants.
2. When my father came home, I (translate), my sister (play), my brother (watch) TV and my mother (cook).
3. They (pay), when you met your friends at a shopping center?
4. When our chief came to the office, our secretary (send) a letter, our programmers (look) through the files.
5. My cousin (not to speak) on the mobile phone, when I saw her in the street.
6. She (not to wash) the floor at four o’clock yesterday.
7. In summer this old man still (stay) at home all the time.
8. Ann (take) a train to Brest at 11 o’clock yesterday?
9. When your colleagues (look) at my new secretary all the time?
10. My aunt (not to read) this book all night long.
11. John (go) to the railway station, when Dick met him?
12. Mother (not to drink) tea but coffee at eleven o’clock yesterday.
13. They (play) in the yard in the evening or in the morning?
14. When the teacher opened the door of the classroom, the pupils (not to sit) at their desks.
Exercise 11. Read the dialogues, translate and act them out.
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1.
§ What were you doing at 7.30?
§ The alarm clock was still ringing and I was just getting out of the bed.
§ And at 7.35?
§ Why, I was dressing.
§ Where were you at 7.50?
§ At breakfast. I was having my breakfast.
§ At 8?
§ Why, I was going to school.
§ Were you? Why are you late, then?
§ Am I?
2.
§ What was Tom reading, Becky?
§ I don’t know.
§ Don’t you know? But he was reading aloud, so you must know.
§ Well, while he was reading aloud I was writing a letter to my friend.
3.
§ Do you remember what you were doing at 8 o’clock last Monday evening?
§ Why? I was talking about music with my friends.
§ Were you? Weren’t you playing chess?
§ Oh, possibly. I don’t remember exactly.
4.
§ Hi! How are you doing?
§ Fine, thank you. And you?
§ Great. Listen. When I came into the hall last night, I saw a lot of students there.
§ No wonder, they were having a discussion.
§ Was the monitor partaking in?
§ No, she wasn’t. She was speaking on the life-story of the main character of the novel.
§ What were the rest of the students doing?
§ They were listening to her very attentively.
5.
§ I’m sorry you didn’t come yesterday, Kate. I was waiting for you in the cafe.
§ I’m awfully sorry, Bill, but I didn’t feel very well.
§ I see. And while I was sitting at a table and waiting for you, Jill came in.
§ You were flirting, smiling at each other, drinking coffee and eating cakes while I was lying in bed ill.
§ You weren’t ill. When we were leaving the cafe, we saw you and Stephanie. You were laughing together and walking arm in arm.
§ Oh, I can easily explain that. We were only... I was only going to the chemist’s...
