Page 92 - LEVEL 2_Neat

GRAMMAR FOCUS: Past continuous tense, when & while

Past continuous tense
1. is used to talk about an action that was happening over a period of time in the past.
2. is very often used with the past simple to say that something happened in the middle of

something else in the past.

In each of the following examples, the single event (past simple) happens in the middle of a
longer action (past continuous).

 We were travelling on a bus tour in India when we came across a wedding
 We stopped to take some photos while the parade was moving slowly in front of our bus.

 We were sitting at the curb hopeless when a family from Denmark, who seriously lived

in a castle, were awesome enough to offer to share their minivan with us all the way back

to Bangkok.

Compiled from: http://esl.fis.edu/grammar/rules/pastcont.htm

A. Read the following sentences carefully and study their structure. Is there any error in it? Give
correction for the incorrect ones.
[Incorrect ] 1. We were enjoying Catalina Island on a safari bus when rain suddenly pouring
down heavily. The safari ended so soon.

[ ] 2. We booked the deluxe room but for some errors in the booking system, other
guests were occupying our supposed to be room.

[ ] 3. The cruise was kind of boring until we spotted a school of dolphin. They were
swam so close to our cruise ship.

[ ] 4. They was taking pictures near the cliff when one of them lost the grip and fell.

It was a terrible sight.
[ ] 5. We were waiting for hours at the airport because the flight was delayed.

[ ] 6. The driver was driving like a mad man, so we were decided to get off from the
taxi and found a bus stop.

[ ] 7. I was asking for a direction so many times and realized that people there were
so friendly to foreigners.

[ ] 8. We were playing volleyball at the beach when the coast guard rings the sirens.

Someone was swept by the wave.
[ ] 9. I was stand near the subway door and when it make a stop, a man beside me

suddenly grabbed my handbag.
[ ] 10. We were standing in line at the entrance when we suddenly hearing a loud

explosion from the parking lot.

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