The past continuous describes actions that took place at some time before now and continued for a period of time. It is most often used to describe a past action or state that was in progress when another action happened.
- The road workers were having lunch from 12 to 1.
- I was working in a convenience store before I decided to go back to school.
- The proposal was still being written when she asked for an update.
This lesson will look at a few other ways to use the past continuous.
Using while with the past continuous
You can use the conjunction while with the past continuous to express that an action or state was (or wasn't) occurring at the same time as another action.
- She was injured while she was skiing.
- I didn’t have very much free time while I was working last summer.
- Why didn’t they add a community garden while they were improving the park?
- Julia was catching up on her emails while she was waiting for her appointment.
While and the past continuous can also be used to give context and explain the connections between two past actions and/or states.
- I couldn’t hear anything while I was trying to connect to the meeting.
- Did you find anything interesting while you were cleaning out the storage room?
Describing temporary and changing past situations
Another way you can use the past continuous is to emphasize that a past situation was temporary.
- Yolanda was staying with her cousin while she was looking for a new place to live.
- They were thinking a lot about how to fix the problem until they finally found the solution.
- Chris was studying grammar this morning, but I think he’s finished.
It can also be used to describe changes over a period of time in the past.
- With all the new buildings going up, the neighbourhood was changing.
- My first year in karate class was great; I was learning new things and getting stronger every day.
Expressing past intentions and hopes
The past continuous can also be used with the verbs plan, intend, and hope followed by an infinitive verb to express intentions or hopes that someone had in the past. You can use this to describe how plans changed and give reasons for why they did.
- The city was planning to introduce more bike lanes next year, but there isn’t enough public support, so they won’t go ahead with it.
- Lana is angry because she was intending to start the meeting at 4:00, but no one is here yet.
- She was hoping to move before September, but I don’t think it will be possible.
Be careful! With the negative forms of this structure, the meaning changes depending on whether the past continuous or infinitive verb is made negative. When the past continuous verb is negative, it generally means that there was no plan or intention.
- I wasn’t planning to discuss this with you today because there isn’t enough time.
- Francisco wasn’t intending to make you upset.
When the infinitive verb is negative, it means that there was a plan to avoid something.
- The citizens were mad because the transit company was planning not to consult them before they made the decision.