Put the verbs in brackets into the past simple or the past continuous.

A As soon as Margaret 1) ...got... (get) off the train, she 2) … (pull) her coat around her. Rain 3) … (fall) heavily and a cold wind 4) … (blow) across the platform. She 5) … (look) around, but no one 6) … (wait) to meet her. She 7) … (turn) to leave when she 8) … (hear) footsteps. A man 9) … (walk) towards her. He 10) … (smile) at her, then he 11) … (say), 'You're finally here.'

B George 1) … (pick) up his bag then, 2) … (throw) it over his shoulder. It 3) … (get) dark and he 4) … (have) a long way to go. He wished that he had let someone know that he was coming. It 5) … (start) to rain, and he was feeling cold and tired from the long journey. Suddenly, he 6) … (hear) a noise, then he 7) … (see) two bright lights on the road ahead. A car 8) … (head) towards him. It slowed down and finally 9) … (stop) beside him. A man 10) … (sit) at the wheel. He 11) … (open) the door quickly and 12) … (say) 'Get in, George.'

C Andy 1) … (step) into the house and 2) … (close) the door behind him. Everything 3) … (be) quiet. His heart 4) … (beat) fast and his hands 5) … (shake) as he crept silently into the empty house, but he was trying not to panic. He soon 6) … (find) what he 7) … (look) for. He smiled with relief as he put on the clothes. The men who 8) … (follow) him would never recognise him now.

 

Imagine that you were present when these things happened, then, in pairs, ask and answer questions, as in the example.

SA: What were you doing when the burglar broke in?

SB: I was watching TV.

SA: What did you do?

SB: I called for help.

1 The burglar broke in.

2 The storm broke.

3 The lights went out.

4 The boat overturned.

5 The earthquake hit.

6 The building caught fire.

 

USED TO / BE USED TO / GET USED TO

We use used to + infinitive to refer to past habits or states. In such cases, used to can be replaced by the past simple with no difference in meaning.

e.g. He used to go out / He went out a lot when he was younger. (He doesn't any more.)

Did she use to spend / Did she spend a lot of money when she was single?

We use the past simple, and not used to, for actions which happened at a definite time in the past.

e.g. He visited Paris last month.

(NOT: He used to visit Paris last month.)

Look at the following examples of how we can use be/get used to:

be/get used to + noun/pronoun/-ing form

e.g. a) They are used to hot weather.

(They are accustomed to hot weather. - present)

b) I'm used to getting up early.

(I'm accustomed to getting up early. - present)

c) She wasn't used to working at night.

(She wasn't accustomed to working at night. - past)

d) Mary is getting used to life in the city.

(Mary is becoming accustomed to life in the city. - present)

e) Simon had never lived in a tropical country before, but he quickly got used to it.

(He became accustomed to it. - past)

f) They will soon get used to cooking their own meals.

(They will become accustomed to cooking their own meals. - future)