1. Circle the correct words to complete the sentences.
1 Jason was / wasn’t at school. He was on holiday.
2 Pete and Kate was / were at the theatre last night.
3 Wendy and Jo were / weren’t with me. Was / Were they with you?
4 ‘Was / Were you at home last night?’ ‘Yes, I was / were.’
5 Harry was / were in Spain last summer.
6 The weather was / were really nice last weekend – warm and sunny.
Answer
1 wasn’t 2 were 3 weren’t, Were 4 Were, was 5 was 6 was
2. Look at the table. Write sentences about where the people were. Use the past simple form of be, affirmative or negative.
|
Day |
Freddy |
Nola |
|
Mon |
London |
Manchester |
|
Tues |
Cardiff |
Cardiff |
|
Wed |
Bristol |
London |
|
Thur |
Newcastle |
Bristol |
|
Fri |
Liverpool |
Liverpool |
|
Sat and Sun |
Plymouth |
Nottingham |
1 Freddy / Manchester / Monday
Freddy wasn’t in Manchester on Monday.
2 Nola / London / Wednesday
……………………………………….
3 Freddy and Nola / Newcastle / Tuesday
……………………………………….
4 Freddy / Plymouth / Saturday and Sunday
……………………………………….
5 Nola / London / Monday
……………………………………….
6 Freddy and Nola / Liverpool / Friday
……………………………………….
Answer
2 Nola was in London on Wednesday.
3 Freddy and Nola weren’t in Newcastle on Tuesday.
4 Freddy was in Plymouth on Saturday and Sunday.
5 Nola wasn’t in London on Monday.
6 Freddy and Nola were in Liverpool on Friday.
3. Where were you? Write questions and true answers.
1 at two o’clock in the morning?
Where were you at two o’clock in the morning?
I was in bed.
2 at ten o’clock yesterday morning?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
3 at three o’clock yesterday afternoon?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
4 at seven o’clock on Friday evening?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
5 at eleven o’clock on Saturday night?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
Answer
2 Where were you at ten o’clock yesterday morning?
(students’ own answers)
3 Where were you at three o’clock yesterday afternoon?
(students’ own answers)
4 Where were you at seven o’clock on Friday evening?
(students’ own answers)
5 Where were you at eleven o’clock Saturday night?
(students’ own answers)
4. What could Sarah and Mike do at these ages? Look at the table and write questions and answers. Use be and can.
|
|
Sarah |
Mike |
|
swim |
age three |
age four |
|
read |
age five |
age three |
|
ride a bike |
age six |
age six |
1 Mike / swim / three?
Could Mike swim when he was three?
No, he couldn’t.
2 Sarah / swim / four?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
3 Mike / read / three?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
4 Sarah / read / four?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
5 Mike and Sarah / ride a bike / six?
……………………………………….
……………………………………….
Answer
2 Could Sarah swim when she was four? Yes, she could.
3 Could Mike read when he was three? Yes, he could.
4 Could Sarah read when she was four? No, she couldn’t.
5 Could Mike and Sarah ride a bike when they were six? Yes, they could.
5. Complete the dialogue. Use the correct past simple form of be and can (affirmative, negative and interrogative).
Zoe Hi, Erin. Are you having a good time in Africa?
Erin Yes, I am. I phoned you on Saturday, but you 1…………………… at home. Then I tried to phone you yesterday. But I 2…………………… get a signal.
Zoe Where are you now?
Erin In Zanzibar. We arrived two days ago. Yesterday we 3…………………… at the beach. I tried surfing, but it was really difficult – I 4…………………… stand up!
Zoe 5…………………… there any sharks?
Erin No! Well, I 6…………………… see any!
Zoe 7…………………… you in Tanzania last week?
Erin Yes, we 8…………………… We climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. The view from the top 9…………………… fantastic! I 10…………………… see for miles!
Zoe Wow! That sounds amazing!
Answer
1 weren’t 2 couldn’t 3 were 4 couldn’t 5 Were
6 couldn’t 7 Were 8 were 9 was 10 could
6. Complete the dialogue with the correct form of be or could (affirmative, negative or interrogative).
Tracy Can you remember your first school, Pat?
Pat Yes, I can.
Tracy How old 1…………………… you?
Pat I 2…………………… five years old on my first day at school.
Tracy 3…………………… you read at the age of five?
Pat Yes, I 4…………………… But I 5…………………… write. My hand was too small to hold the pencil!
Tracy Who 6…………………… your favourite teacher?
Pat All the teachers 7…………………… very kind. But my favourite 8…………………… my class teacher, Miss Adcock.
Answer
1 were 2 was 3 Could 4 could 5 couldn’t 6 was
7 were 8 was
Related Posts
- English Grammar Exercises for A1 – Past simple: be and can
- should / shouldn’t – English Grammar Exercises for A1
- going to – English Grammar Exercises for A1
- Present perfect or past simple – English Grammar Exercises for A1
- Present perfect – English Grammar Exercises for A1
- Superlative adjectives – English Grammar Exercises for A1
