Past simple with -ed: moving day! Past simple exercises with regular -ed verbs

This A2 drill lesson gives regular past simple exercises: one -ed form for every person, its spelling rules, and the time words that call for it.

Grammar: I worked, she lived, we studied, the bus stopped; + ed, + d, y → ied, doubled letters; no was before the verb; yesterday, last night, two days ago, in 2020 or now, these days.
Topic: An invented moving day in Seattle: Nadia's diary, her review of the movers, her cousin's post, her roommate's email home, and a chat with Sam.
Activities: True or false, sorting, choices, gap-fills, anagrams, memory games, tables, spelling quizzes, drag-and-drop, word order, matching, a chat and a test.

What's inside

Chapter 1The rule
- PictureUnlock
- Study the scheme: past simple of regular verbsGrammar schemeTry it
- Is the sentence correct? Mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Sort the sentences: present or past?Sort into columnsTry it
- Choose the right past formChoose the optionUnlock
- Write the verbs in the past simpleFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 2Spelling: -ed
- Sort the verbs: how do we add -ed?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Choose the right spellingChoose the optionTry it
- Write the past simple: watch the spellingFill in the gapsUnlock
- Unscramble the past simple formsAnagramUnlock
- Find the matching pairs: verb and past formMemory gameUnlock
- Fill in the table: verbs and past formsFill in the tableUnlock
- Find the spelling mistake and choose the right wordQuizUnlock
Chapter 3Sentences in the past
- Fill in the gaps: sentences in the past simpleFill in the gapsTry it
- Choose the right form of the verbChoose the optionUnlock
- Drag the verbs into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
- Fill in the table: every day and yesterdayFill in the tableUnlock
- Match the beginnings and the endingsMatchUnlock
- Find the mistake and choose the right wordsQuizUnlock
Chapter 4Time words and a story
- Choose the right time wordsChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: present simple or past simple?Fill in the gapsUnlock
- Put the words in the right order: time wordsUnjumbleUnlock
- Read Grandma Rosa's story and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Kenji's blog post and drag the verbs into the gapsDrag and dropTry it
- Choose the correct sentenceQuizUnlock
Chapter 5Real life: Moving day
- Read Nadia's diaryReal-life documentUnlock
- Read the diary again: true or false?True or falseUnlock
- Read Nadia's review and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Marco's post and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
- Read Jess's email and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Choose the right replies: Sam texts youChatTry it
- Test yourself: choose the right answerQuizUnlock
Chapter 6Homework
- Choose the right form: a vacation at the beachChoose the optionUnlock
- Write the verbs in the past simple: a day at the officeFill in the gapsUnlock
- Sort the past forms: how do we spell them?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Put the words in the right order: sentencesUnjumbleUnlock
- Unscramble the verbs in the past simpleAnagramUnlock
- Match the beginnings and the endings: a busy SaturdayMatchUnlock
- Fill in the table: present and pastFill in the tableUnlock
- Drag the verbs into the gaps: a busy MondayDrag and dropUnlock
- Find the mistakes in the sentencesQuizUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with the present simple or past simple: now and thenFill in the gapsUnlock
- Choose the right time words: a family albumChoose the optionUnlock
- Find the matching pairs: past formsMemory gameUnlock
- Mark the correct sentences true and the wrong ones falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Read Omar's postcard and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read the news and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock

Grammar: the past simple of regular verbs

The past simple tells about actions that finished at a past time: We moved to Canada in 2019. Regular verbs add -ed, and that one form serves everybody: I, you, she, we and they worked. The tricky part is the spelling.

Past simple: regular verbs

Talk about finished actions in the past: verb + -ed, the same form for every person.

Verb + -ed for every person

I cleaned, she walked, they moved: no -s for he, she or it, so never workeds. No was or were goes before it: I played tennis yesterday, not I was play tennis.

verb + -ed

I / you / he / she / it / we / theyverb + -edyesterday, last week, ago…

I cleaned my room yesterday.

She walked to work last week.

They moved to Canada in 2019.

Every person: the same form

Who	Present simple	Past simple
I	I work.	I worked.
you	You work.	You worked.
he	He works.	He worked. (not: workeds)
she	She works.	She worked.
it	It rains.	It rained.
we	We work.	We worked.
they	They work.	They worked.

Spelling: -ed, -d, -ied and double letters

Most verbs add -ed: worked. A final e takes just -d: lived. Consonant + y turns into -ied: studied, but played. A short verb ending in vowel + consonant doubles it: stopped, planned, but never w, x or y (fixed); longer verbs usually don't: visited, opened.

The verb	Past simple	Examples
most verbs	+ ed	work → worked, watch → watched, clean → cleaned
verb + e	+ d	live → lived, move → moved, dance → danced
consonant + y	y → ied	study → studied, carry → carried, try → tried
vowel + y	+ ed	play → played, stay → stayed, enjoy → enjoyed (not: plaied)
a short verb (one syllable): one vowel + one consonant at the end	double the last letter + ed	stop → stopped, plan → planned, chat → chatted (but not w, x, y: fix → fixed)
a longer verb that ends in vowel + consonant	usually just + ed	visit → visited, open → opened, listen → listened (not: openned)

Now or a finished time?

Every day, now and these days take the present simple: Ana lives in Miami now. A finished time takes the past: yesterday, last night, an hour ago, in 2020. Ana lived in Texas in 2020.

Present simple: now, every day

every day · usually · now · these days
I walk to work every day.
Ana lives in Miami now.

Past simple: a finished time

yesterday · yesterday morning · last night · last week · last year
two days ago · an hour ago · in 2020
I walked to work yesterday.
Ana lived in Texas in 2020.

Saying -ed, and the irregular verbs

The ending is always spelled -ed but sounds three ways: /t/ in worked, /d/ in played, /ɪd/ in wanted. Some common verbs don't take -ed at all: go – went, have – had, pay – paid. They come in the next lesson.

Say -ed in three ways

The spelling is always -ed, but we say it in three ways. /t/ after the sounds p, k, s, sh, ch, f: stopped, worked, watched. /d/ after other sounds: played, lived, cleaned. /ɪd/, an extra syllable, after t and d: wanted, visited, needed.

Regular and irregular verbs

In this lesson, every verb is regular: it takes -ed. Some common verbs are irregular and don't: go → went, have → had, buy → bought. Careful: pay → paid and say → said are irregular too. You learn the irregular verbs in the next lesson.

Common mistakes

The lesson's distractors include I was play tennis, She walkeds to school, We watch a movie last night and He studyed. A past time word needs the -ed form, spelled by the rules above.

I was play tennis yesterday.
I played tennis yesterday.
no was / were before the verb
She walkeds to school.
She walked to school.
no -s in the past: he, she and it walked too
We watch a movie last night.
We watched a movie last night.
a past time word needs the past form
He studyed. The bus stoped.
He studied. The bus stopped.
watch the spelling

Examples

Yesterday, we moved into a new apartment.yesterday
My parents lived in Mexico in 2010.in + a year
Leo studied for his test last week.last + week / night / year
We stopped at a café an hour ago.… ago
I cleaned, and my brother cooked.the same form for every person
It rained all night, so we stayed at home.two actions in the past

More lessons on this grammar: Past simple lessons and exercises

Try the regular past simple exercises

Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.

What's in the lesson

38 auto-checked exercises
7 games
1 real-life document
1 grammar scheme
1 picture

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

use one past form for every person: I cleaned my room yesterday. She walked to work last week, not She walkeds
spell the -ed forms: lived, studied, played, stopped, fixed, visited, not studyed, stoped or openned
say what happened without was: I played tennis yesterday, not I was play tennis
choose the present or the past from the time words: My sister lives in Paris now. Two years ago, my sister lived in Rome.
use ago, last and in correctly: an hour ago, last year, in 2018, not before two weeks or on 2018

Grammar:: past simple · regular verbs · -ed spelling · yesterday / last / ago
Topic:: grammar practice · moving house · home · neighbors

Teaching tips

Set up a spelling relay: teams line up at the board, you call out a verb (carry, shop, enjoy), and the first student writes its past form; one wrong letter sends the turn back.
Clap the -ed sounds: read worked, played and wanted aloud, and students clap only when they hear the extra syllable at the end.
Retell moving day: after Nadia's diary, pairs close the text and take turns saying one thing that happened, like Marco connected the TV, until they run out.

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The whole course: English Grammar Practice · A2

English Grammar Practice · A2 has 28 drill lessons, one grammar point each: the past simple and continuous, used to, comparatives, going to and will, the present perfect, modals, the zero and first conditionals and questions. Each has the rule as a scheme, 43 to 47 exercises that check themselves, 15 of them for homework, and no new words.See the course

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