The fact that by using the past tense the speaker has a definite time in mind differentiates this

use of the past simple from the indefinite use of the present perfect. According to G. Leech (1978:
144), a parallel can be established between the past tense / present perfect pair and the definite /
indefinite article pair. The difference between: I saw him and I have seen him is therefore
parallel to that between the man and a man. Just as, at the beginning of a narrative, the definite
article tends to be preceded by the indefinite article, which establishes the initial framework of
reference, so the past tense tends to presuppose a framework of time reference already established
by the present perfect (G. Leech, 1978: 144). Both tendencies can be observed in the following
utterance:
I have just spoken to a man and his wife. The man wanted to know whether there was any
work
hereabouts.
Where have you been? Ive been to the theatre. Did you enjoy it?
Bill has passed his examination. He got an A in the oral and a B in the written paper.
Ann has just become engaged: it took us completely by surprise.
(2) Habitual / repeated past actions: The past simple expresses habitual, repeated past actions, i.e.
actions that regularly happened in the past but no longer happen. The past simple is usually
associated with a time expression (an adverbial of frequency) such as always, never, often,
frequently, regularly):
We often spent hours on end talking about poetry.
I always got up at six in those days. / Every day he went to the park.
Repeated actions in the past may also be rendered by means of used to + Infinitive or would +
Infinitive.
Used to + infinitive can render:
a) Past habit: with dynamic verbs it expresses repeated actions in the past (something that regularly
happened in the past but no longer happens), i.e. a discontinued habit which contrasts with the
present. A time expression is not necessary:
Do you go to the cinema very often? Not now, but I used to.
Many people who used to frequent the cinema now prefer watching television.
Did you use to eat a lot of sweets when you were a child?
I used to get up at six, but now I get up at eight.
When I was a child I used to go skating every winter.
Father doesnt go in for sport now but he used to play football when he was younger.
b) Used to + the infinitive of state verbs can also describe past states (a permanent state in the
past, a state which no longer exists: His hair used to be jet-black but it is white now.
I used to own a horse.
Iceland used to belong to Denmark.
He used to be a football fan when he was in is teens.
He used to have a beard but he shaved it off.
The construction used to + the infinitive of state verbs can be paraphrased by once + past tense:
His hair was once jet-black
I owned a horse once.
Iceland once belonged to Denmark.
Would is used to describe a persons typical activities in the past (habitual, repeated actions in
the past) with the particular sense of characteristic, predictable behaviour: It can only be used to
describe repeated actions (it is not used with state verbs):
Every evening was the same. Jack would turn on the radio, light his pipe and fall asleep.
He would walk to school whenever it was sunny.
He would sit for hours in front of his house looking at the passers-by.
On Sundays, when I was a child, we would get up early and go fishing.
 Would is typical of narrative style (mainly used in writing), but used to is more characteristic of
spoken English.
According to Celce-Murcia et al. (1999: 129), when used to and would occur together, used to
tends to frame the discourse, and would serves to elaborate (the topic):
When we were children, we used to swing on the lawn for hours.
We would stop only when we were called for dinner.
(3) The past simple with other temporal values
Just as the present simple refers to events other than present ones, so the past simple is used to
refer to events other than past (events which do not denote past time). Thus, the past simple can be
used to refer to the present and, occasionally, to the future.
a. The past simple with present time reference
The past simple with the value of present is also called attitudinal past because this verbal form
is related to the attitude of the speaker rather than to time. The past tense (instead of the present
tense) of verbs like: hope, intend, want, wish, wonder is used as a marker of social distance,
politeness, or indirectness. The past tense in these verbs is used to express a polite request or
inquiry. This is because the past tense distances an event from the present, and distancing an event
can make it more indirect.
I wondered if you could lend me this book.
Did you want to speak to me?
I wanted to ask you about that.
The effect of the past tense in a question such as Did you want to speak to me? is to make the
inquiry indirect and therefore more polite than a question with the present tense: Do you want to
speak to me? or I want to ask you about that. The present tense in this situation would seem rather
brusque and demanding (G. Leech, 1978: 15)
b. The past simple with the value of the past perfect
The past simple may occur instead of the past perfect in clauses of time introduced by conjunctions
like after (indicating that the event is prior in time to the event of the main clause):
He went out to play after he finished / had finished his homework.
c. The past tense with future time reference:
- the past tense can refer to future actions in temporal and conditional clauses when the main
verb is in the past:
He asked me to call on him as soon as I arrived.
He said he would go on the trip if the weather was fine.
- The past simple with the value of an anticipated event:
This value is possible only with the verb be in constructions like: be to, be going to, be about to
expressing an event that was due to happen after a time in the past:
They were to leave for London on Saturday but the flight was cancelled.