Texts for Past Tenses

These are some examples of the use of Past tense in texts. 
You may underline the sentences contain the correct tense.
After that, answer the questions based on the text to help you understand the             texts.

Text 1
Peter and Mary live in small village near some hills. A small river goes from the hills to the sea. It passes through the village.

Last Saturday there was a bad storm in the hills. There was very heavy rain during the  night and the river was flooded. Water started to go into many of the houses.

Peter heard the rain. He woke up and looked out of the window. It was not very dark because the moon was shining. Peter  saw the water. He told his sister, Mary. He said to her, “you must tell mummy and daddy. I’ll go and tell other people near our house.”

Peter knocked on the doors of many house. He told the people. Then he went home. Peter, Mary and their parents went to stay in a friend’s house. It was on high ground, so the water did not go into the house.

On Monday, peter and Mary came back to their own house. The walls and floor were very dirty, so they helped their parents to clean the house.

·         Choose the best words.

1.    … people lived at Peter’s house.

a.    Two

b.    Three

c.    Four

d.    Many

2.    Peter’s house was …

a.    In the river

b.    In the hills

c.    Near a small village

d.    Near other houses

3.    Peter heard …

a.    The heavy rain

b.    Mary

c.    The moon

d.    The river

4.    Peter did not … last Saturday.

a.    Tell his parents

b.    Tell Mary

c.    Knock on the doors of many houses

d.    Go to a friend’s house

5.    Why was the river flooded ?

a.    Water from the sea went in the river

b.    The moon was shining

c.    There was heavy rain during a storm

d.    The river was on high ground

6.    On Sunday Peter was …

a.    In his house

b.    Helping other people

c.    At a friend’s house

7.    From this passage we know that Mary’s house was not …

a.    Dirty after the flood

b.    On high ground

c.    Flooded during the storm

d.    A small one

Text 2

A ship was going from Singapore to Jakarta. Near Riau there was a bad storm. The ship hit a rock. It began to sink.

The captain said to his men, “Climb down the rope. Get into our small boat. I don’t want to leave my ship. I must stay here.”

The men climbed down the rope. They got into the small boat. The next morning a big ship came. A passenger saw the men in their small boat. The ship took the men to Palembang.

In the afternoon a helicopter flew from Jakarta. The pilot saw the ship on the rock. It was nearly under the water. The pilot let down a rope. The captain climbed up it. He got into the helicopter and went to Jakarta. After this his ship sank.

Choose the best word.

1.    A ship hit a rock near …

a.    Jakarta

b.    Riau

c.    Singapore

d.    Palembang

2.    The men on this ship wanted to go to …

a.    Palembang

b.    Jakarta

c.    Singapore

3.     The ship came from …

a.    Jakarta

b.    Riau

c.    Singapore

4.    The ship hit a rock. Then it sank …

a.    Before it hit a rock

b.    Before the storm

c.    That day

d.    The next day

5.    The captain said to the men,…

a.    “I must get into the small boat with you”

b.    “you must stay on the ship with me.”

c.    “the ship can’t sink. We can stay here”

d.    “I must stay here but you must go”

6.    How did the men get into the small boat?

a.    They climbed up a rope

b.    They went down a rope

c.    The pilot of the helicopter helped them

d.    A passenger on a big ship saw them

7.    Where did the men go ?

a.    To Jakarta

b.    To Riau

c.    To Palembang

d.    To Singapore

8.    Why did the pilot let down a rope ?

a.    To help the men in the boat

b.    To help the captain

c.    He wanted to climb down to speak to the captain

d.    A passenger on the big ship told him about the men

9.    In line 2, began means …

a.    Starts

b.    Started

c.    Starting

d.    Start

10. In line 6 a passenger is a man who …

a.    Works on a ship

b.    Pays money to travel on a ship

c.    Does not like small ships

d.    Cleans the ship

Text 3

THE WRONG TIN

Mr Green had a tin of petrol. It was in a room at the back of his  house. The petrol was for his car. He had a tin of kerosene in the room also. The kerosene was for the lamps in his house.

One evening his son, Peter, helped him in the garden. They wanted to burn some rubbish. It did not burn quickly because it was damp. Mr Green told Peter to get the kerosene on the fire. It can make a fire burn quickly.

Peter got the wrong tin. Mr Green opened it and smelt the petrol. ”I can’t throw this on the fire,”he said. ”it will explode. Take this tin back the room. Get the other tin.”

That evening Mr Green wrote ‘petrol’ on one tin. He wrote ‘kerosene’ on the order tin.

Choose the best words.

1.    Mr Green had a tin of petrol. It was …

a.    For the lamps in his house

b.    For the fire in the garden

c.    For his car

2.    The kerosene was for …

a.    The lamps in Mr Green car

b.    The lamps in his house

c.    The petrol

3.    In the room there … two tins.

a.    Was

b.    Were

c.    Is

4.    Mr Green wanted to burn some rubbish …

a.    In his house

b.    In the room

c.    In the tin

d.    In his garden

5.    The rubbish did not bun quickly. It was …

a.    Dry

b.    Not dry

c.    Too hot

6.    A foolish man can hold a  burning match near an open tin of petrol. Then …

a.    The match can go out

b.    The petrol can burn slowly

c.    The petrol can explode

7.    Peter helped his father. He got … at first.

a.    A tin of petrol

b.    A tin of kerosene

c.    A tin of kerosene and petrol

d.    Two tins of petrol

8.    Mr Green did not throw the petrol on the fire. He knew it …

a.    Was not cheap                                  

b.    Was dangerous

c.    Was safe
d.  Was wet

9.    We call things ‘rubbish’ when …

a.    They are useful

b.    They are not useful

c.    They burn quickly

d.    They are in the garden

10. Can we put petrol in a lamp in the house ?

a.    I don’t  know

b.    Yes, it is safe

c.    No, it is dangerous

Text 4

 One day David fell down a well near his house. His parents wee not at home. His father was at the market. His mother was helping a neighbor. David called his younger brother, Paul.

Paul was ten years old. He heard his brother. He ran out the house. He saw  David at the bottom of the well. David was very tall and the water was not very deep. Paul brought a long piece of rope. He could not pull David out, because he was not very strong. He tied one end of the rope to a tree. Then David climbed up the rope. He thanked his brother. Then he went into the house to put on some dry clothes.

Choose the best words.

1.    David’s brother was …

a.    At the market

b.    Helping a neighbor

c.    Down a well

d.    In his house

2.    David’s mother was …

a.    Helped a neighbor

b.    Helping somebody

c.    At the market

d.    In her house

3.    David called his brother because …

a.    He could not get into the well

b.    He hurt his leg

c.    He was angry

d.    He wanted to get out of the well

4.    David was …

a.    Older than Paul

b.    Older than Paul’s father

c.    Not yet ten years old

d.    As old as his brother

5.    How deep was the well ?

a.    I don’t know

b.    Very deep

c.    Not very deep

d.    Ten years

6.    What did Paul do with the rope ?

a.    He put one end round a tree

b.    He climbed up it

c.    He tied one end to the bottom of the well

d.    He dropped it all down the well

7.    Which statement is NOT true?

a.    Paul thanked his brother

b.    David was not Paul’s  uncle

c.    Paul could not pull David out

d.    Paul did not fall down the well

8.    A neighbor (line 2) …

a.    Is ill

b.    Is very old

c.    Lives near you

d.    Work at a market

9.    The bottom of a well (line 5) is …

a.    The side

b.    The wall

c.    The lowest part

d.    The highest part

10. David thanked his brother …

a.    To help him

b.    For helping him

c.    For falling in the well

d.    To fall in the well

Text 5

Mr Green was driving from Bridge City to New town. A policeman on a motor-cycle stopped him. The policeman lived at seaport.

Mr Green       :why you did stop me ?

Policeman     :I was following you car. You did not drive carefully.

Mr Green       :I’m a very carefully driver. I did not hit anybody.

Policeman     :you nearly hit a tree at the side of the road. I saw you.

Mr Green       :a large insect flew into my car. It came through a window. I didn’t want It to hurt me. I tried to kill the insect but it flew out of the window.

Policeman     :you must drive carefully. Next time you must stop your car if there iis an insect in it. Then you can try to kill it. That is safer. Then you can’t hurt another driver.

Mr Green       :yes, you’re right. Next time I must stop the car first.

Choose the best words.

1.     The policeman was going …

a.    To Bridge City

b.    To New town

c.    To Seaport

d.    From Seaport

2.    The policeman …

a.    Was not driving a car

b.    Was not on a motor-cycle

c.    Did not speak to Mr Green

3.    Mr Green said, “I did not hit anybody,” this  tells us that …

a.    He did not like fighting

b.    He was a good fighter

c.    He did not hurt anybody

d.    He nearly hit a tree at the side of the road

4.    Mr Green’s car was … the policeman before he stopped.

a.    Behind

b.    Under

c.    Above

d.    In front of

5.    Mr Green … the insect.

a.    Did not kill

b.    Killed

c.    Liked

d.    Stung

6.    Many insects can …

a.    Write

b.    Read

c.    Drive

d.    Fly

7.    Mr Green nearly hit a tree. … an insect flew into his car.

a.    After his

b.    Before this

c.    Because of this

d.    At the same time

8.    The policeman told Mr Green … next time.

a.    What to say

b.    What to think

c.    What to kill

d.    What to do

9.    I followed a man. This means that I was … him.

a.    Behind

b.    At the side of

c.    In front of

d.    A friend of

10. Mr Green said, “next time I must stop the car first.” He meant that he must stop the car …

a.    Before he gets out

b.    Before an insect flies in

c.    Before he sees a policeman

d.    Before  he tries to kill an insect

[Reference: Etherton, A.R.B (1975), Objective English Test, Yogyakarta, Kanisius.]