This quiz works best with JavaScript enabled. Home > English Grammar > Grammar > Parts Of Speech > Verbs > Tenses > Past > Simple Past Vs Past Progressive – Quiz 1 🏠 Homepage 📘 Download PDF Books 📕 Premium PDF Books Simple Past Vs Past Progressive Quiz 1 (60 MCQs) Quiz Instructions Select an option to see the correct answer instantly. 1. He was living in Russia when the Revolution ..... A) Started. B) Start. C) Starting. D) Starts. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Started. 2. The mechanic ..... the car. A) Was fixing. B) Fix. C) Were fixing. D) Fixd. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was fixing. 3. What is the correct form:'While she ..... (study), the phone rang'? A) Was studying. B) Study. C) Studied. D) Studying. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was studying. 4. While Dad ..... (print) an article, the printer ..... (run out) of paper. A) Was printing. B) Ran out. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was printing. 5. Before I began to teach at UAO I had to go to a ..... where they asked me many questions to see if I was able to teach here. A) Conference. B) Interview. C) Meeting. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Interview. 6. It is an accion that was happening in the past A) Simple Present. B) Past Progressive. C) Present Progressive. D) Simple Past. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Past Progressive. 7. If you were born 5 years ago ..... How old are you? A) 10 years old. B) 1 year old. C) 11 years old. D) 5 years old. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) 5 years old. 8. When I was reading the newspaper, the storm ..... A) Started. B) Starting. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Started. 9. While I ..... , I saw my aunt Suzanne. A) Shopped. B) Was shopping. C) Was shopped. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Was shopping. 10. My little sister ..... (draw) a picture while I ..... (study) for my French exam. A) Was drawing. B) Studied. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was drawing. 11. Mary ..... a movie when she listened a weird sound A) Watched. B) Was watching. C) Watching. D) Were watching. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Was watching. 12. Amanda watched the entire movie. A) Simple past. B) Past progressive. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Simple past. 13. She ..... her hair when the postman came A) Was doing. B) Did. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was doing. 14. We parked the car ..... walked to the restaurant. A) When. B) While. C) Then. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Then. 15. When a person is ..... he/she is careful not to offend another person. A) Polite. B) Tactful. C) Forgetful. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Tactful. 16. Where were the olympic games in 2021? A) London. B) Tokyo. C) Paris. D) Rio de Janeiro. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Tokyo. 17. Choose the correct simple past form:'They (play) basketball yesterday.' A) Playe. B) Plays. C) Played. D) Playing. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Played. 18. The driver is a suspect in a burglary, and she ..... town. A) Were leaving. B) Left. C) Was leaving. D) Was left. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Was leaving. 19. Read and choose the correct answer.Mathias ..... (break) the window while he ..... (play) soccer. A) Breaked-was playing. B) Break-play. C) Broke-were playing. D) Broke-was playing. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Broke-was playing. 20. She ..... a book when the phone rang A) Was reading. B) Read. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was reading. 21. What were you doing when I ..... ? A) Arrived. B) Was arriving. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Arrived. 22. Identify the past progressive tense in the sentence:'He was sleeping when the alarm rang.' A) Sleeping was. B) Was sleeping. C) Was rang. D) The alarm was. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Was sleeping. 23. Susie ..... a film when she heard the noise. A) Was. B) Watched. C) Was watching. D) Were watching. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Was watching. 24. Read and choose the correct answer.The electricity ..... (go off) while we ..... (bake) a cake. A) Gone off-baked. B) Went off-were baking. C) Go off-baking. D) Went off-was baking. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Went off-were baking. 25. He ..... the approaching car because he ..... to his friend. A) Didn't see / was talking. B) Didn't see / was talked. C) Didn't see / was talkking. D) Didn't see / talked. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Didn't see / was talking. 26. Complete:When I arrived, they ..... (eat) pizza. A) Will eat. B) Ate. C) Eating. D) Were eating. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Were eating. 27. I ..... a whole lasagna last night! A) Eated. B) Eaten. C) Ate. D) Was eating. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Ate. 28. I ate a sandwich ..... my brother was eating pizza. A) While. B) When. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) While. 29. Choose the correct optionThe teacher ..... angry because we ..... A) Was-were talking. B) Is-are talking. C) Was-was talking. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was-were talking. 30. I ..... a book when the doorbell suddenly rang. A) Read. B) Was reading. C) Have read. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Was reading. 31. ..... were talking loudly when the teacher came into the room. A) I. B) She. C) We. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) We. 32. When they ..... we were waiting for the bus. A) Arrived. B) Were arriving. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Arrived. 33. He was dancing at a party when he ..... his girlfriend. A) Met. B) Meet. C) Was meeting. D) Meets. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Met. 34. John was looking at the birds in the tree. A) Simple past. B) Past progressive. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Past progressive. 35. My son ..... a coin when he was walking A) Found. B) Was finding. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Found. 36. Mary ..... a book in the library while his friend ..... outside. A) Read / was playing. B) Was reading / played. C) Was reading / was playing. D) Read / played. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Was reading / was playing. 37. Carlos was playing videogames ..... his Xbox console overheated. A) While. B) When. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) When. 38. What happens when the verb ends in "e" in the Past Progressive? A) Add another "e". B) Delete "e" and add "i". C) Delete "e" and add "ed". D) Delete "e" and add "ing". Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Delete "e" and add "ing". 39. As the Simple Past and Past Progressive are used in the same sentence, the ..... is a shorter action that interrupts a longer ..... action. A) When-While. B) Past Progressive-Simple Past. C) Event-Continuous. D) Simple Past-Past Progressive. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Simple Past-Past Progressive. 40. He was playing soccer ..... he broke his leg. A) When. B) While. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) When. 41. When the phone ..... , I was watching TV. A) Rang. B) Was ringig. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Rang. 42. He ..... (run) and he suddenly ..... (feel) pain in his leg. A) Run/felt. B) Runned/felt. C) Ran/feel. D) Was running/felt. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Was running/felt. 43. My dad ..... my mom to a party last night. A) Invites. B) Invite. C) Was inviting. D) Invited. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Invited. 44. I ..... a walk to the grocery store last night. Then, I ..... my sister for a lift back home! A) Was taking/ was asking. B) Took/ was asking. C) Took/ asked. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Took/ asked. 45. Past form of:Listen A) Listened. B) Listent. C) Loose. D) Lisen. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Listened. 46. When I ..... , I hurt myself. A) Were cooking. B) Cooked. C) Was cooking. D) Cook. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) Was cooking. 47. Harry ..... (play) computer games when he ..... (hear) a strange noise. A) Was playing / was hearing. B) Was playing / hear. C) Played / heard. D) Was playing / heard. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Was playing / heard. 48. Who ..... to when I arrived? A) Were you talking. B) Did you talk. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Were you talking. 49. I was drinink tea ..... my sister was doing her homework. A) When. B) While. C) Then. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) While. 50. Choose the correct simple past form:'He (go) to the party last night.' A) Going. B) Went. C) Goed. D) Goes. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Went. 51. I ..... him when he was eating the cakes. A) Was seeing. B) Saw. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Saw. 52. The boys ..... because it was raining A) Weren't playing. B) Didn't play. C) All the above. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Didn't play. 53. They ..... (break) a pot while they ..... (water) the flowers. A) Was breaking / watered. B) Was breaking / was watering. C) Broke / watered. D) Broke / were watering. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Broke / were watering. 54. Fill in the blank with the correct past progressive form:'They (watch) a movie when the power went out.' A) Were watching. B) Are watching. C) Was watching. D) Watched. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Were watching. 55. When she ..... the pedestrian, she immediately ..... on her brakes, but it was too late. A) Saw / was stepping. B) Saw / stepped. C) Was seeing / was spepping. D) Saw / steped. Show Answer Correct Answer: B) Saw / stepped. 56. When I ..... the exercise I ..... at the pictures.(do, break) A) Was doing, I broke. B) Were doing, I was breaking. C) Did, was breaking. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: A) Was doing, I broke. 57. ..... I saw her, I was shopping for clothes. A) What. B) While. C) Since. D) When. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) When. 58. Which sentence uses the simple past tense? 'I am happy.' or 'I was happy.' A) I will be happy. B) I am happy. C) I have been happy. D) I was happy. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) I was happy. 59. What verb tense is used for completed actions? A) Imperfect past. B) Simple future. C) Simple conditional. D) Simple perfect past. Show Answer Correct Answer: D) Simple perfect past. 60. What is the Past Progressive? A) An action that started in the past and continuous to the present. B) An action that started and finished in the past. C) An action in progress in the past. D) None of the above. Show Answer Correct Answer: C) An action in progress in the past. Next →Related QuizzesTenses QuizzesVerbs QuizzesSimple Past Vs Past Progressive Quiz 2Simple Past Vs Past Progressive Quiz 3Simple Past Vs Past Progressive Quiz 4Form And Use The Past Progressive Verb Tense QuizPast, Present, Future Perfect Tense QuizPast And Past Perfect Tense QuizPast Continuous Tense QuizPast Future Perfect Continuous Tense Quiz 🏠 Back to Homepage 📘 Download PDF Books 📕 Premium PDF Books