Time Clauses Exercises PDFSet 3: Past Time Clauses: When, After, Before & While
20 questions·14 min·Answers included·Explanations included
Preview: Questions
Fill in the blank with the correct option.
1.When I ___ home, my family was having dinner.
a) have gotb) getc) gotd) was getting
2.While the children ___, their parents prepared dinner.
a) were playingb) had playedc) playd) were played
3.By the time we arrived, the film ___.
a) was already startingb) already startsc) has already startedd) had already started
4.She was reading a book when the phone ___.
a) had rungb) rangc) ringsd) was ringing
5.Before she ___ for work, she always made breakfast for her children.
a) was leavingb) leavesc) had leftd) left
... and 15 more questions in the PDF
Preview: Answers
1.got
2.were playing
3.had already started
4.rang
5.left
... and 15 more answers in the PDF
Preview: Explanations
1."got"(c)
'When' + past simple describes a short completed action that happened during an ongoing action (past continuous). 'When I got home, my family was having dinner.'
2."were playing"(a)
After 'while' in past time clauses, use past continuous to show an action was in progress. 'While the children were playing, their parents prepared dinner.'
3."had already started"(d)
'By the time' + past simple in the time clause requires past perfect in the main clause to show the earlier action. The film started before we arrived.
4."rang"(b)
'When' + past simple describes a short action that interrupted an ongoing action (past continuous 'was reading'). 'The phone rang' is the interrupting event.
5."left"(d)
After 'before' in past time clauses, past simple is used. The word 'always' shows this was a habitual past action.
... and 15 more explanations in the PDF
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