Past Continuous Tense

                           Definition

The Past Continuous Tense describes an action that was happening at a specific time in the past.

It is used to show that something was in progress at a particular moment in the past.

                  Definition (in Hindi):

Past Continuous Tense का प्रयोग किसी ऐसे कार्य के लिए किया जाता है जो भूतकाल में किसी निश्चित समय पर जारी था।

Structure:

✅ Subject + was/were + verb(+ing) + object

Helping Verbs:

Was – Singular subjects (He, She, It, Ram, etc.)

Were – Plural subjects (We, You, They, Ram and Shyam, etc.)

✅ Examples 

(with Hindi to English translations):

मैं खाना खा रहा था।

I was eating food.

वह पढ़ाई कर रही थी।

She was studying.

वे क्रिकेट खेल रहे थे।

They were playing cricket.

तुम गाना गा रहे थे।

 You were singing a song.

बच्चा रो रहा था।

The baby was crying.

हम फिल्म देख रहे थे।

We were watching a movie.

राम सो रहा था।

 Ram was sleeping.

पंखा चल रहा था।

The fan was running.

बारिश हो रही थी।

It was raining.

तुम स्कूल जा रहे थे।

 You were going to school.

Negative Sentences 

🔹 Structure:

Subject + was/were + not + verb(+ing) + object

✨ Examples (Hindi to English):

मैं नहीं सो रहा था।

I was not sleeping.

वह नहीं खेल रही थी।

She was not playing.

वे काम नहीं कर रहे थे।

They were not working.

तुम गाना नहीं गा रहे थे।

You were not singing.

बच्चा रो नहीं रहा था।

The baby was not crying.

हम बाहर नहीं जा रहे थे।

We were not going outside.

राम कुछ नहीं खा रहा था।

Ram was not eating anything.

बारिश नहीं हो रही थी।

It was not raining.

मैं नहीं पढ़ रहा था।

 I was not studying.

वे शोर नहीं मचा रहे थे।

They were not making noise.

वह गाना नहीं गा रही थी।

She was not singing a song.

? Interrogative Sentences (Questions):

Structure

was/were + subject + verb(+ing) + object?

क्या तुम पढ़ रहे थे?

Were you studying?

क्या वह गा रही थी?

Was she singing?

क्या वे काम कर रहे थे?

Were they working?

WH-Questions

🔹 Structure:

WH-word + was/were + subject + verb(+ing) + object?

✨ Common WH-Words and Their Meanings:

WH-Word (English) Hindi Meaning

What क्या

When कब

Where कहाँ

Why क्यों

Who कौन

How कैसे

✨ Examples (Hindi to English):

तुम क्या कर रहे थे?

What were you doing?

वह क्यों रो रही थी?

Why was she crying?

वे कहाँ जा रहे थे?

Where were they going?

राम कब पढ़ रहा था?

When was Ram studying?

वह किससे बात कर रही थी?

Who was she talking to?

तुम कैसे गा रहे थे?

How were you singing?

तुम किसके साथ खेल रहे थे?

Who were you playing with?

वे किसके बारे में बात कर रहे थे?

What were they talking about?

More Examples with Time Reference:

रात 9 बजे मैं टीवी देख रहा था।

I was watching TV at 9 PM.

जब वह आया, मैं खाना बना रही थी।

I was cooking when he arrived.

कल दोपहर वे फुटबॉल खेल रहे थे।

They were playing football yesterday afternoon.

उस समय तुम क्या कर रहे थे?

What were you doing at that time?

बारिश हो रही थी जब हम निकले। 

It was raining when we left.