Here are the two main structures you need to master when you speak about a past event:
That’s it! When you talk about the past, you just need to make the difference between telling a story (“Specific Past” = the Past Simple in traditional grammar) and sharing a general experience (“Non-Specific Past” = the Present Perfect in traditional grammar)
So, every time you construct a phrase in the Past, think about whether you want to mention a specific date! But WHAT IS CONSIDERED as a “specific date”?
ACTIVITY: For each phrase below, say if it contains a specific date and put the verb in the right form.
Sam, an activist, never (eat) meat in his life.
EXPLANATION: “never” or “in his life” is not a specific date! When you take all of a person’s life, it’s not the same as talking about a specific period in the past.
SOLUTION (Non-Specific Past): Sam has never eaten meat in his life.
Sam (participate) in a street protest against climate change last year.
EXPLANATION: Of course, “last year” is not as specific as, for example, saying “on June 30, 2022”, but it still specific enough. Actually, every expression with “last” like “last week”, “last January” etc is always considered specific.
SOLUTION (Specific Past): Sam participated in a street protest last year.
Five months ago, Sam (break up) with his girlfriend because she (not support) his ideas and (not want) to participate in all of his protest rallies.
EXPLANATION: Any expression with “ago” is considered specific. All of the actions in this phrase are specific because they all relate to this situation five months ago. Maybe the girlfried doesn’t have the same opinions today, but the phrase doesn’t give us any indications about that.
SOLUTION (Specific Past) : Five months ago, Sam broke up with his girlfriend because she didn’t support his ideas and didn’t want to participate in all of his protest rallies.
Sam already (meet) some real politicians to try to influence their views.
EXPLANATION: “already” means in “sometime in somebody’s life”, but it’s not specific. It doesn’t give any indication about when exactly the situation took place.
SOLUTION (Non-Specific Past) : Sam has already met some real politicians
In 2018, Sam (create) a website to promote his ideas, (shoot) some videos on wildlife preservation and (organize) a donation campaign. Still, he (not promote) the project enough, and he (not get) enough support from the public.
EXPLANATION: “In 2018” is precise enough to be considered a date, and it will apply to all of the actions in these phrases.
SOLUTION (Specific Past) : In 2018, Sam created a website to promote his ideas, shot some videos on wildlife preservation and organized a donation campaign. Still, he didn’t promote the project enough, and he didn’t get enough support from the public.
When Sam (be) young, he (get) a lot of inspiration for his activism from his parents who (raise) him with these ideas in mind.
EXPLANATION: The word “when” creates a specific context and shows that you want to tell a story and not just share general experience.
SOLUTION (Specific Past): When Sam was young, he got a lot of inspiration for his activism from his parents who raised him with these ideas in mind.
Sam (not take) a plane since 2018 because it’s harmful for the environment.
EXPLANATION: Be careful with this situation because it’s very different from “Sam didn’t take a plane in 2018″! Here, the action hasn’t taken place in an indetermined period of time after 2018.
SOLUTION (Non-Specific Past): Sam hasn’t taken a plane since 2018.
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