1 Past Time

Isabel Allende:
Precious Past

Focus on Grammar 5
Moments
Part I, Unit 2
By Ruth Luman, Gabriele Steiner, and BJ Wells
Copyright 2006. Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Simple Past
Use the simple past to describe actions,
events, or states at a specific past time.

Isabel Allende grew up in

South America.
In the 1950s, she attended a
private school in Bolivia.

now
past future
 Past Progressive
Use the past progressive to express an action that
was in progress (not finished) in the past.

Allende was working for the United Nations. . .

. . . when she married her first husband in 1962.

1962
now
past future
 Present Perfect
Use present perfect to express actions, events,
or states completed at an indefinite time in the
past.

Isabel Allende has lived in Peru, Chile,

and Venezuela.

She has done numerous lecture tours

in America and Europe.

now
past future
Simple Past vs. Present Perfect
Present perfect: for events at an indefinite time in the past
Simple past: for events at a definite time in the past

Isabel Allende has traveled all over

Europe.

In 1964, she traveled all over

Europe with her husband and daughter.

1964 now
past future
 Form sentences with
Practice 1 present perfect or
simple past.

now
past future

Example: She
4. (live)
hasinlived
the U.S.
in the
forU.S.
She had
(have) herher forover
over1515years
years.
daughter in 1963.
1963

She married
3. (marry) herher second
second
She
1. (work)
has worked
for several
for husband in 1988.
husband in 1988
several
magazines
magazines.
She moved
2. (move) to to Venezuela
Venezuela
with herher
with family in 1975.
family in 1975
 Past with Used To
Use used to + base form to show habitual
events that were true in the past but not today.

She used to be on the editorial staff

of a Chilean magazine called Paula.

She used to write many humorous

and feminist articles for that magazine.

now
past future
 Past Perfect 1
Use the past perfect to express events that
happened before a past event.

Allende had published many magazine articles . . .

. . . before she wrote her famous novel House of Spirits.

now
past future

before past
past event event
 Past Perfect 2
The past perfect is often used with by or by the time.
The by clause may precede or follow the main clause.

By the time Isabel Allende returned to Chile in 1991 . . .

. . . fifteen years had gone by.

fifteen years now

past future

1976 1991
 Form sentences with simple
Practice 2 past and past perfect using
before.

She
(work)had worked for
for the
Example: the United
United Nations Nations
before
(have)she
her had her
sonsonNicolas.
Nicolas now
past future

She
1. (be)had been a
a contributor
to Mampato to
contributor
Magazine Isabel
2. Isabelhad published
(publish)
Mampato several
severalnovels
novels before she
magazine(direct)
beforethe
started a trilogy for young
(start) a
she directedmagazine
the adults. trilogy for
magazine. young adults
 Past with Was / Were Going To

Use was / were going to + base form to describe

events that were supposed to happen but did not.

Isabel Allende was going to stay in Chile, but after the

military coup in 1973, she had to leave the country.

In 1978, they were going to separate, but Allende

soon returned to her husband.

now
past did not future
happen
 Form sentences with
Practice 3 was / were going to.

Allende was going She

Allende planned to live
hadintoChile,
flee
Example:
to live
but shein had
Chile.
to flee the
thecountry.
country.

She was going

She planned to to write a letter,
The letter turned
1
writethe
but a letter.
letter turnedinto a novel.
into a novel.

2 They were going

They planned to toThey
staydivorced
together,
in
staythey
but together.
divorced in1987.
1987.
 References

Copyright 2006 Pearson Education

and its licensors. All rights reserved.

Photo Credits:
Isabel Allende Loria Barra