tenses

[riverkid]

Originally Posted by MIA6

Hi, Riverkid. Thanks so much for replies.

Hi MIA6. You're most welcome.

Here i have another question: What's the Use of the past continuous tense? e.g. I was eating a chicken. Did it happen at a moment of speaking? If so, past continuous tense has only this Use?

We often use the PCT to relate one action to another.

I was eating this broasted chicken when all of a sudden an earthquake hit. The kitchen light dropped off the ceiling right onto my delicious chicken. Better it than me thought, eh?

[whitemoon]

Originally Posted by riverkid

We often use the PCT to relate one action to another.

Hello reverkid,
May you be happy and healthy!
Please explain me.

I was eating this broasted chicken when all of a sudden an earthquake hit. (I don't understand and I can't guess sentence construction.)The kitchen light dropped off the ceiling right onto my delicious chicken. Better it than me thought,(It means "I thought", doesn't it? After "than" you have used "me thought", haven't you?) eh?

What I've already known about past continuous tense is:

When we want to describe an event happened in the past and continued for a while, we use PCT. For example,

From 8:00 to 9:00, I was reading a novel last night.

We can use PCT with SPT (Simple Past Tense) when we want to show an event happened in the middle of another event.

I was reading a novel and my brother came to me.
When I was reading a novel, my brother came to me.
While I was reading a novel, my brother came to me.
As I was reading a novel, my brother came to me.

Are they right? Is there any usage else? If so, Please show me.
Whitmoon
Have a good time!