The Past Continuous has 4 main uses/functions: Use 1 - an interrupted action in the past. Here the Past Continuous is used to indicate a long action that was interrupted. Usually the action that interrupts the long action is the Past Simple. I was studying when Danny called me. She was answering an important e-mail when I interrupted her. It is formed by using the past tense of "to be" (was, were) with a present participle verb. Let's look at an example: plans for that building last year. (were + creating) In the above example, we know that last year (time), Vida and Peter created plans (past action—use past continuous) for the building. /p>. Continuous means in action, i.e. the action/event is or was or will be going on at a particular time. This article will help one understand the three different types of continuous tenses with examples. Table of Contents. Present Continuous Tense Examples; Past Continuous Tense Examples; Future Continuous Tense Examples; FAQs on Continuous Tense The present continuous is also used for repeated events or habits, but in this case the event or habit started and finished in the past. Examples of words commonly used with this use of the past continuous tense are: always. constantly. every day. A verb tense tells us when the action of state described by the verb happened. The three main verb tenses in English are the present, the past, and the future. The present continuous and past continuous tenses (also called present progressive and past progressive) are used when we are describing actions that continue for a period of time in the We can always use the past simple as an alternative to used to or would to talk about past states or habits. The main difference is that the past simple doesn't emphasise the repeated or continuous nature of the action or situation. Also, the past simple doesn't make it so clear that the thing is no longer true. Example: We stayed in a hotel. Past continuous tense: This type of past tense is used to describe an event or occurrence that is ongoing or continuing in the past. Example: We were playing tennis at the club. Past Perfect Tense : This type of tense is used to describe an event in the past that has been completed. The Past Continuous Tense is used to describe a previous event that is still happening. This tense can be used to show that someone is in the middle of an action. It is used to define an action that occurs due to another action. Past Continuous is also used to describe an action that occurred in the Past and was interrupted. LmFU.