English Grammar

1. Tempos Verbais: Past Continuous
O Past Continuous é um tempo verbal composto de
was/were + forma de final –ing do verbo principal:
The man was walking along the beach at sunrise.
(O homem estava caminhando pela praia ao nascer
do Sol.)
Para obter a forma negativa basta acrescentar not
depois de was/were:
He was not (wasn’t) running along the beach.
(Ele não estava correndo na praia.)

2. Para obter a forma interrogativa coloca-se was/were no início da
pergunta:
Was the man walking along the beach at sunrise?
(O homem estava caminhando pela praia ao nascer do sol?)
Usos do Past Continuous
- ação que estava se desenvolvendo em determinado momento no
passado:
At ten o’clock last night we were watching TV.
(Ontem à noite, às dez horas, estávamos assistindo à TV.)
- ação que estava acontecendo no passado quando outra ação
aconteceu (Past Simple).

3. We were watching TV when my brother arrived.
(Nós estávamos assistindo à TV quando meu irmão chegou.)
Ou então:
My brother arrived as we were watching TV.
(Meu irmão chegou enquanto estávamos assistindo à TV.)
- duas ações que estavam acontecendo ao mesmo tempo, no
passado. Nessas frases de duas orações, geralmente ligadas
por while (enquanto), ambos verbos aparecem no Past
Continuous.
While we were watching TV, the dog was sleeping.
(Enquanto nós estávamos assistindo à TV, o cachorro estava
dormindo.)

4. Complete com o Past Continuous dos verbos entre
parênteses.
1. When Calvin’s mother opened the door to the boy’s
room, he _________ to be asleep. (to pretend)
2. That happened in the sixties. At that time we
__________ under dictatorship in Brazil. (to live)
3. “We __________ through very difficult times,” says
Gilberto Gil. (to go)
4. The man’s three children were outside, and they
____________ in the mud. (to play)
5. I noticed that the fisherman ___________ something
strange. (to do)
6. He __________ the starfish back into the sea. (to
throw)

5. Complete com o Past Continuous dos verbos entre parênteses.
1. When Calvin’s mother opened the door to the boy’s room,
he was pretending to be asleep.
2. That happened in the sixties. At that time we were living
under dictatorship in Brazil.
3. “We were going through very difficult times,” says Gilberto
Gil.
4. The man’s three children were outside, and they were
playing in the mud.
5. I noticed that the fisherman was doing something strange.
6. He was throwing the starfish back into the sea.