Past simple
ያለፈ ቀላል ጊዜ (past simple)
I worked, I went. For finished actions at a finished time in the past: yesterday, last year, in 2019, two days ago.
The form
Regular verbs add -ed: work → worked, live → lived. Irregular verbs have their own past form: go → went, buy → bought, see → saw (see the irregular-verbs page for the full list). The good news: the past simple is the same for every person, I, you, she, they: she worked, they went. For negatives and questions use did + the base verb: I didn't go (not I didn't went), Did you see it? The verb be is different: was / were, wasn't / weren't, Was she…?
In Amharic
መደበኛ ግሦች -ed ይጨምራሉ፦ work → worked, live → lived። ኢመደበኛ ግሦች የራሳቸው ያለፈ ቅርጽ አላቸው፦ go → went, buy → bought, see → saw (ለሙሉ ዝርዝሩ irregular-verbs ገጹን ይመልከቱ)። ጥሩ ዜና፦ ያለፈ ቀላል ለሁሉም ሰው አንድ ነው፣ I, you, she, they፦ she worked, they went። ለአሉታዊና ለጥያቄ did + መሠረታዊ ግሥ ይጠቀሙ፦ I didn't go (I didn't went አይደለም)፣ Did you see it? be ግሥ የተለየ ነው፦ was / were, wasn't / weren't, Was she…?
| Regular (work) | Irregular (go) | be | |
|---|---|---|---|
| + | I / she / they worked. | I / she / they went. | I / she was. You / we / they were. |
| − | I didn't work. | She didn't go. | I wasn't. They weren't. |
| ? | Did you work? | Did she go? | Was he…? Were you…? |
| short answers | Yes, I did. / No, I didn't. | Yes, she did. / No, she didn't. | Yes, he was. / No, we weren't. |
- -ed spelling: + d after -e (lived); consonant + y → ied (studied, but played); double one final consonant after one short stressed vowel (stop → stopped, plan → planned).
- -ed has three sounds: /t/ after p, k, s, sh, ch (worked); /d/ after other sounds (lived); /ɪd/ after t and d (waited, needed).
- After did / didn't, always the base verb: Did she call? She didn't call.
- I moved to Las Vegas in 2019.
- We waited at the DMV for three hours.
- She didn't get the job, but they called her back later.
- Did you pay the electric bill? — Yes, I did.
- The store was closed, so we went home.
When to use it
On a timeline, the past simple is a point (or a closed box) in the past, with a gap between it and now. The action is finished, and the time is finished. Use it for single actions (I called the landlord yesterday), a series of actions in a story (I got up, had coffee and left), past habits (I walked to school every day in Addis), and past states (We lived in Virginia for two years). Amharic ሄድኩ, ሠራሁ matches it well.
In Amharic
በጊዜ መስመር ላይ ያለፈ ቀላል በያለፈው ጊዜ ውስጥ ያለ ነጥብ (ወይም የተዘጋ ሳጥን) ነው፤ በእሱና በአሁን መካከል ክፍተት አለ። ድርጊቱም ጊዜውም አልቋል። ይጠቀሙበት፦ ለአንድ ድርጊት (I called the landlord yesterday)፣ በታሪክ ውስጥ ለተከታታይ ድርጊቶች (I got up, had coffee and left)፣ ለያለፈ ልማድ (I walked to school every day in Addis) እና ለያለፈ ሁኔታ (We lived in Virginia for two years)። የአማርኛው "ሄድኩ"፣ "ሠራሁ" በደንብ ይስማማዋል።
- Signal words: yesterday, last night / week / year, ago, in 2015, when I was young, then, after that.
- ago comes after the length of time: three days ago (not ago three days).
- I came to the US eight years ago.
- Last Saturday we had a coffee ceremony at my cousin's house.
- When I was a child, I helped my mother at the market.
- He finished his shift, picked up the kids and cooked dinner.
Past simple or present perfect?
If you say or know WHEN, and that time is over, use the past simple: I lost my phone last week. If the time is not given, or the period is not over, use the present perfect: I've lost my phone (and I still don't have it). Questions with When…? always take the past simple. Past simple = the story is closed; present perfect = the story still touches now.
In Amharic
መቼ እንደሆነ ከተናገሩ ወይም ካወቁ፣ ያ ጊዜም ካለፈ፣ ያለፈ ቀላልን ይጠቀሙ፦ I lost my phone last week። ጊዜው ካልተጠቀሰ ወይም ወቅቱ ካላለቀ፣ የአሁን ፍጹምን ይጠቀሙ፦ I've lost my phone (አሁንም የለኝም)። በ When…? የሚጀምሩ ጥያቄዎች ሁልጊዜ ያለፈ ቀላልን ይወስዳሉ። ያለፈ ቀላል = ታሪኩ ተዘግቷል፤ የአሁን ፍጹም = ታሪኩ አሁንም አሁኑን ይነካል።
| Past simple | Present perfect |
|---|---|
| I worked there in 2020. (I don't now.) | I've worked there since 2020. (I still do.) |
| Did you call the school this morning? (It's afternoon.) | Have you called the school this morning? (It's still morning.) |
| She went to Seattle last month. | She's been to Seattle three times. |
- Never: I have seen him yesterday. Always: I saw him yesterday.
- Have you ever been to Lake Tahoe? — Yes, we went in 2023.
- I've finished the form. I finished it ten minutes ago.
- When did you get your green card?
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| I didn't go to work. | After didn't, use the base verb. | |
| Did you see the email? | After did, use the base verb. | |
| I saw him yesterday. | Finished time (yesterday): past simple. | |
| She bought a new phone. | buy is irregular: bought. | |
| I came to America in 2018. | in 2018 is past: use the past form came. | |
| I moved here two years ago. | English says two years ago, not before two years (from Amharic ከሁለት ዓመት በፊት). |
Practice
Each answer is checked as you go, with the reason. Nothing here is saved.
stop → (past) ___
study → (past) ___
We ___ to Phoenix last weekend.
She didn't ___ the bus.
___ you call the doctor yesterday? (one word)
I came to the US five years ___.
How do you say the -ed in “waited”?
The kids ___ (be) at school yesterday. (one word)
Which is correct?
buy → (past) ___
Did she pass the test? — Yes, she ___.