Simple Past Tense: Complete Guide for Nepali Students

 Simple Past Tense: Complete Guide for Nepali Students

Introduction / परिचय

Simple Past Tense ले भूतकालमा भएको काम देखाउँछ जो अहिले सकिएको छ। यसले काम कहिले भयो भन्ने कुरा स्पष्ट पार्छ। यो tense मा कामको समय निश्चित हुन्छ।

English: Simple Past Tense shows an action that happened and finished in the past. The time of the action is specific and known.

Nepali: Simple Past Tense ले भूतकालमा भएको र सकिएको कामलाई देखाउँछ। काम कहिले भयो भन्ने कुरा स्पष्ट हुन्छ।

Structure / संरचना

Positive Sentence (सकारात्मक वाक्य)

Subject + V2 (Past Form) + Object

Subject	Verb Form	Example
I, You, We, They, He, She, It	V2	I went to school yesterday.
All subjects	V2	She ate rice last night.

Nepali: कर्ता + क्रियाको दोस्रो रूप + कर्म

Note: Simple Past मा सबै subjects सँग एउटै V2 form प्रयोग हुन्छ। (I went, She went, They went — सबै same)

Negative Sentence (नकारात्मक वाक्य)

Subject + did + not + V1 (Base Form) + Object

Example	Nepali Meaning
I did not go to school yesterday.	म हिजो स्कुल गइनँ।
She did not eat rice last night.	उनले हिजो राति भात खाइनन्।

Short forms: didn't

Important: Negative मा V2 होइन, V1 प्रयोग हुन्छ। "did not went" गलत हो।

Question Sentence (प्रश्नवाचक वाक्य)

Did + Subject + V1 + Object ?

Example	Nepali Meaning
Did you go to school yesterday?	तिमी हिजो स्कुल गयौ?
Did she eat rice last night?	उनले हिजो राति भात खाइन्?

Important: Question मा पनि V2 होइन, V1 प्रयोग हुन्छ।

V2 (Past Form) कसरी बनाउने?

Regular Verbs (नियमित क्रियापद)

Rule: Base verb + -ed

V1 (Base)	V2 (Past)	Nepali
play	played	खेल्नु
work	worked	काम गर्नु
study	studied	पढ्नु
watch	watched	हेर्नु
clean	cleaned	सफा गर्नु
help	helped	मद्दत गर्नु
talk	talked	बोल्नु
walk	walked	हिँड्न

Spelling Rules:

Rule	V1	V2
Most verbs: add -ed	work	worked
Ends in -e: add -d	live	lived
Ends in consonant + y: change y to i + ed	study	studied
Ends in vowel + y: add -ed	play	played
Short CVC: double consonant + ed	stop	stopped

Irregular Verbs (अनियमित क्रियापद)

यी verbs को V2 form नियम अनुसार बन्दैन। याद गर्नुपर्छ।

V1	V2	Nepali
go	went	जानु
eat	ate	खानु
see	saw	देख्नु
do	did	गर्नु
write	wrote	लेख्नु
take	took	लिनु
give	gave	दिनु
come	came	आउनु
buy	bought	किन्नु
read	read	पढ्नु
speak	spoke	बोल्नु
break	broke	भाँच्नु
drink	drank	पिउनु
know	knew	थाहा हुनु
begin	began	सुरु गर्नु
get	got	पाउनु
make	made	बनाउनु
say	said	भन्नु
tell	told	भन्नु
think	thought	सोच्नु
find	found	भेट्नु
leave	left	छोड्नु
meet	met	भेट्नु
run	ran	दौडनु
sit	sat	बस्नु
sleep	slept	सुत्नु
stand	stood	उभिनु
swim	swam	पौडी खेल्नु
win	won	जित्नु
lose	lost	हार्नु

Uses of Simple Past Tense / प्रयोगहरू

Use 1: Completed Action in the Past

भूतकालमा सकिएको काम

काम भूतकालमा भयो र सकियो। समय स्पष्ट हुन्छ।

Example	Nepali Meaning
I visited Pokhara last year.	मैले गत वर्ष पोखरा भ्रमण गरें।
She finished her homework an hour ago.	उनले एक घण्टा अघि गृहकार्य सकाइन्।
They watched a movie last night.	उनीहरूले हिजो राति चलचित्र हेरे।
He bought a new phone yesterday.	उसले हिजो नयाँ फोन किन्यो।

Use 2: Series of Completed Actions

क्रमबद्ध रूपमा भएका कामहरू

Example	Nepali Meaning
She woke up, brushed her teeth, and ate breakfast.	उनी उठिन्, दाँत माझिन्, र बिहानको खाना खाइन्।
He entered the room, sat down, and opened his book.	उ कोठामा छिर्यो, बस्यो, र किताब खोल्यो।

Use 3: Past Habits (Repeated Actions)

भूतकालको बानी (दोहोरिने काम)

Example	Nepali Meaning
I walked to school every day when I was young.	म सानो हुँदा हरेक दिन स्कुल हिँड्थें।
She visited her grandmother every summer.	उनी हरेक गर्मीमा हजुरआमालाई भेट्न जान्थिन्।

Use 4: Past Facts or General Truths

भूतकालको तथ्य

Example	Nepali Meaning
He was a doctor.	उ डाक्टर थिए।
They lived in Kathmandu for ten years.	उनीहरू दस वर्ष काठमाडौंमा बसे।

Time Adverbs / समयसूचक शब्दहरू

Time Adverbs Used with Simple Past

English	Nepali Meaning	Example
yesterday	हिजो	I saw him yesterday.
last night	हिजो राति	She called me last night.
last week	गत हप्ता	We met last week.
last month	गत महिना	He left last month.
last year	गत वर्ष	They visited Nepal last year.
ago	अघि	I met her two days ago.
in 2020	2020 मा	I graduated in 2020.
on Monday	सोमबार	She arrived on Monday.
then	त्यसपछि	He finished work and then left.
when	जब	I was sleeping when he called.
just now	भर्खरै	She left just now.
this morning	आज बिहान	I saw him this morning.
once	एक पटक	I once visited Lumbini.
formerly	पहिले	He formerly worked here.
previously	पहिले	She previously lived in Delhi.

Present Perfect vs Simple Past

Simple Past	Present Perfect
I saw him yesterday.	I have seen him.
समय स्पष्ट छ (yesterday)	समय स्पष्ट छैन
काम सकियो	कामको असर अहिले छ
Specific time: yesterday, last week, in 2020, ago	Non-specific: ever, never, just, already, yet

Sample Sentences / नमूना वाक्यहरू

Daily Life (दैनिक जीवन)

English	Nepali Meaning
I woke up at 6 AM yesterday.	म हिजो बिहान 6 बजे उठें।
She cooked dinner last night.	उनले हिजो राति खाना पकाइन्।
They played football yesterday.	उनीहरूले हिजो फुटबल खेले।
He watched TV all evening.	उ साँझभर टिभी हेर्यो।
We visited our grandparents last week.	हामीले गत हप्ता हजुरबुबा-हजुरआमालाई भेट्यौं।

Work/Study (काम/पढाइ)

English	Nepali Meaning
I submitted my assignment yesterday.	मैले हिजो मेरो असाइनमेन्ट बुझाएँ।
She worked here for five years.	उनले यहाँ पाँच वर्ष काम गरिन्।
They completed the project last month.	उनीहरूले गत महिना परियोजना पूरा गरे।
He taught at this school in 2015.	उनले 2015 मा यो स्कुलमा पढाए।
We studied English for two hours.	हामीले दुई घण्टा अंग्रेजी पढ्यौं।

Experience (अनुभव)

English	Nepali Meaning
I visited many countries last year.	मैले गत वर्ष धेरै देशहरू भ्रमण गरें।
She went to Nepal in 2019.	उनी 2019 मा नेपाल गइन्।
Did you eat Nepali food?	तिमीले नेपाली खाना खायौ?
He saw that movie last week.	उसले गत हप्ता त्यो चलचित्र हेर्यो।
I met your brother yesterday.	मैले हिजो तिम्रो भाइलाई भेटें।

Common Mistakes / सामान्य गल्तीहरू

Wrong	Right	Reason
I did not went to school.	I did not go to school.	did + not + V1
Did she ate rice?	Did she eat rice?	Did + subject + V1
He goed to school.	He went to school.	Irregular verb: go → went
She studyed hard.	She studied hard.	Consonant + y → ied
I have seen him yesterday.	I saw him yesterday.	Specific past time = Simple Past
They was happy.	They were happy.	They + were
He were tired.	He was tired.	He/She/It + was

Was/Were (Past form of "to be")

Subject	Past Form	Example
I, He, She, It	was	I was tired.
You, We, They	were	They were happy.

 

Negative	Question
I was not (wasn't)	Was I?
They were not (weren't)	Were they?

Quick Summary Table

Aspect	Rule
Structure	Subject + V2 + Object
Negative	Subject + did + not + V1
Question	Did + subject + V1?
All subjects	Same V2 form
Was	I, He, She, It
Were	You, We, They
Use 1	Completed action in past
Use 2	Series of completed actions
Use 3	Past habits
Use 4	Past facts
Time adverbs	yesterday, last week, ago, in 2020

Practice Exercise

Fill in the blanks with correct Simple Past form:

1.      I ________ (go) to school yesterday.

2.      She ________ (eat) rice last night.

3.      They ________ (play) football last week.

4.      He ________ (not come) to the party.

5.      ________ you ________ (see) him yesterday?

6.      We ________ (study) English for two hours.

7.      She ________ (buy) a new phone last month.

8.      I ________ (not sleep) well last night.

9.      ________ she ________ (finish) her work?

10. He ________ (write) a letter yesterday.

Answers:

1.      went

2.      ate

3.      played

4.      did not come

5.      Did / see

6.      studied

7.      bought

8.      did not sleep

9.      Did / finish

10. wrote

Final Reminder for Nepali Students

1.      V2 प्रयोग गर्नुहोस् positive sentence मा — "I went" not "I go"

2.      Did + V1 प्रयोग गर्नुहोस् negative र question मा — "I did not go" not "I did not went"

3.      Specific past time (yesterday, last week, ago) सँग Simple Past प्रयोग गर्नुहोस्

4.      Irregular verbs को V2 form याद गर्नुहोस् — go → went, eat → ate

5.      Was/Were — I/He/She/It = was, You/We/They = were

6.      Present Perfect सँग Simple Past मिसाउनु हुँदैन — "I have seen him yesterday" गलत हो

100 Simple Past Tense Practice Questions

Instructions

Fill in the blanks with the correct Simple Past form. Choose from the options given in brackets. Answers with short reasons are provided at the end.

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Part 1: Questions 1–100

#	Question
1	I ________ (go / went / gone) to school yesterday.
2	She ________ (eat / ate / eaten) rice last night.
3	They ________ (play / played / playing) football last week.
4	He ________ (not come / did not come / did not came) to the party.
5	________ you ________ (Did / see, Did / saw, Do / see) him yesterday?
6	We ________ (study / studied / studying) English for two hours.
7	She ________ (buy / bought / boughted) a new phone last month.
8	I ________ (not sleep / did not sleep / did not slept) well last night.
9	________ she ________ (Did / finish, Did / finished, Does / finish) her work?
10	He ________ (write / wrote / writed) a letter yesterday.
11	I ________ (wake / woke / waked) up at 6 AM yesterday.
12	She ________ (cook / cooked / cooking) dinner last night.
13	They ________ (visit / visited / visiting) their grandparents last week.
14	He ________ (watch / watched / watching) TV all evening.
15	We ________ (meet / met / meeted) him at the station.
16	She ________ (not go / did not go / did not went) to the market.
17	________ he ________ (Did / come, Did / came, Does / come) to school?
18	I ________ (see / saw / seen) a beautiful bird yesterday.
19	They ________ (buy / bought / buyed) a new car last month.
20	She ________ (take / took / taked) many photos.
21	He ________ (give / gave / gived) me a gift.
22	We ________ (not see / did not see / did not saw) that movie.
23	________ you ________ (Did / eat, Did / ate, Do / eat) breakfast?
24	I ________ (speak / spoke / speaked) to the manager yesterday.
25	She ________ (break / broke / breaked) her phone.
26	They ________ (drink / drank / drinked) coffee last night.
27	He ________ (know / knew / knowed) the answer.
28	We ________ (begin / began / begun) the meeting at 10 AM.
29	She ________ (not take / did not take / did not took) her medicine.
30	________ they ________ (Did / go, Did / went, Do / go) to Pokhara?
31	I ________ (get / got / getted) a new laptop last week.
32	She ________ (make / made / maked) a cake yesterday.
33	He ________ (say / said / sayed) hello to me.
34	They ________ (tell / told / telled) us the truth.
35	I ________ (think / thought / thinked) about it last night.
36	She ________ (find / found / finded) her keys.
37	We ________ (leave / left / leaved) the office at 5 PM.
38	He ________ (meet / met / meeted) his friend yesterday.
39	They ________ (run / ran / runned) in the park.
40	________ she ________ (Did / sit, Did / sat, Does / sit) here?
41	I ________ (sleep / slept / sleeped) for eight hours.
42	She ________ (stand / stood / standed) near the door.
43	He ________ (swim / swam / swimmed) in the pool.
44	They ________ (win / won / winned) the match.
45	I ________ (lose / lost / losed) my wallet.
46	She ________ (not eat / did not eat / did not ate) anything.
47	________ you ________ (Did / write, Did / wrote, Do / write) the report?
48	He ________ (read / read / readed) the newspaper.
49	We ________ (sing / sang / singed) a song.
50	They ________ (dance / danced / dancing) all night.
51	I ________ (teach / taught / teached) him English.
52	She ________ (catch / caught / catched) the bus.
53	He ________ (bring / brought / bringed) his book.
54	We ________ (not have / did not have / did not had) time.
55	________ he ________ (Did / bring, Did / brought, Does / bring) the food?
56	I ________ (put / put / putted) the keys on the table.
57	She ________ (cut / cut / cutted) the vegetables.
58	They ________ (build / built / builded) a new house.
59	He ________ (send / sent / sended) an email.
60	I ________ (spend / spent / spended) two hours studying.
61	She ________ (not tell / did not tell / did not told) me.
62	________ they ________ (Did / win, Did / won, Do / win) the game?
63	We ________ (fly / flew / flyed) to Delhi.
64	He ________ (drive / drove / drived) to work.
65	She ________ (ride / rode / rided) a bicycle.
66	I ________ (wear / wore / weared) a new shirt.
67	They ________ (grow / grew / growed) vegetables.
68	He ________ (draw / drew / drawed) a picture.
69	We ________ (not go / did not go / did not went) to the party.
70	________ she ________ (Did / make, Did / made, Does / make) a cake?
71	I ________ (hear / heard / heared) a strange noise.
72	She ________ (feel / felt / feeled) happy.
73	He ________ (keep / kept / keeped) the secret.
74	They ________ (sell / sold / selled) their old car.
75	I ________ (pay / paid / payed) the bill.
76	She ________ (not understand / did not understand / did not understood) the question.
77	________ you ________ (Did / hear, Did / heard, Do / hear) the news?
78	He ________ (choose / chose / choosed) the red shirt.
79	We ________ (forget / forgot / forgetted) the time.
80	She ________ (fall / fell / falled) down the stairs.
81	I ________ (hurt / hurt / hurted) my leg.
82	They ________ (lend / lent / lended) me money.
83	He ________ (shake / shook / shaked) my hand.
84	She ________ (steal / stole / stealed) the cookie.
85	We ________ (not see / did not see / did not saw) the sign.
86	________ he ________ (Did / steal, Did / stole, Does / steal) the money?
87	I ________ (understand / understood / understanded) the lesson.
88	She ________ (teach / taught / teached) us maths.
89	He ________ (fight / fought / fighted) bravely.
90	They ________ (seek / sought / seeked) help.
91	I ________ (think / thought / thinked) it was a good idea.
92	She ________ (not wear / did not wear / did not wore) a jacket.
93	________ they ________ (Did / find, Did / found, Do / find) the treasure?
94	He ________ (become / became / becomed) a doctor.
95	We ________ (begin / began / begun) to laugh.
96	She ________ (bring / brought / bringed) her sister.
97	I ________ (buy / bought / buyed) some fruits.
98	They ________ (catch / caught / catched) the thief.
99	He ________ (not do / did not do / did not did) his homework.
100	She ________ (go / went / gone) to the market yesterday.

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Part 2: Answers with Short Reasons

#	Answer	Short Reason
1	went	Irregular: go → went
2	ate	Irregular: eat → ate
3	played	Regular: play → played
4	did not come	did + not + V1
5	Did / see	Question: Did + subject + V1
6	studied	Consonant + y → ied
7	bought	Irregular: buy → bought
8	did not sleep	did + not + V1
9	Did / finish	Question: Did + subject + V1
10	wrote	Irregular: write → wrote
11	woke	Irregular: wake → woke
12	cooked	Regular: cook → cooked
13	visited	Regular: visit → visited
14	watched	Regular: watch → watched
15	met	Irregular: meet → met
16	did not go	did + not + V1
17	Did / come	Question: Did + subject + V1
18	saw	Irregular: see → saw
19	bought	Irregular: buy → bought
20	took	Irregular: take → took
21	gave	Irregular: give → gave
22	did not see	did + not + V1
23	Did / eat	Question: Did + subject + V1
24	spoke	Irregular: speak → spoke
25	broke	Irregular: break → broke
26	drank	Irregular: drink → drank
27	knew	Irregular: know → knew
28	began	Irregular: begin → began
29	did not take	did + not + V1
30	Did / go	Did + subject + V1
31	got	Irregular: get → got
32	made	Irregular: make → made
33	said	Irregular: say → said
34	told	Irregular: tell → told
35	thought	Irregular: think → thought
36	found	Irregular: find → found
37	left	Irregular: leave → left
38	met	Irregular: meet → met
39	ran	Irregular: run → ran
40	Did / sit	Question: Did + subject + V1
41	slept	Irregular: sleep → slept
42	stood	Irregular: stand → stood
43	swam	Irregular: swim → swam
44	won	Irregular: win → won
45	lost	Irregular: lose → lost
46	did not eat	did + not + V1
47	Did / write	Question: Did + subject + V1
48	read	Irregular: read → read (pronounced "red")
49	sang	Irregular: sing → sang
50	danced	Regular: dance → danced
51	taught	Irregular: teach → taught
52	caught	Irregular: catch → caught
53	brought	Irregular: bring → brought
54	did not have	did + not + V1
55	Did / bring	Question: Did + subject + V1
56	put	Irregular: put → put (same)
57	cut	Irregular: cut → cut (same)
58	built	Irregular: build → built
59	sent	Irregular: send → sent
60	spent	Irregular: spend → spent
61	did not tell	did + not + V1
62	Did / win	Question: Did + subject + V1
63	flew	Irregular: fly → flew
64	drove	Irregular: drive → drove
65	rode	Irregular: ride → rode
66	wore	Irregular: wear → wore
67	grew	Irregular: grow → grew
68	drew	Irregular: draw → drew
69	did not go	did + not + V1
70	Did / make	Question: Did + subject + V1
71	heard	Irregular: hear → heard
72	felt	Irregular: feel → felt
73	kept	Irregular: keep → kept
74	sold	Irregular: sell → sold
75	paid	Irregular: pay → paid
76	did not understand	did + not + V1
77	Did / hear	Question: Did + subject + V1
78	chose	Irregular: choose → chose
79	forgot	Irregular: forget → forgot
80	fell	Irregular: fall → fell
81	hurt	Irregular: hurt → hurt (same)
82	lent	Irregular: lend → lent
83	shook	Irregular: shake → shook
84	stole	Irregular: steal → stole
85	did not see	did + not + V1
86	Did / steal	Question: Did + subject + V1
87	understood	Irregular: understand → understood
88	taught	Irregular: teach → taught
89	fought	Irregular: fight → fought
90	sought	Irregular: seek → sought
91	thought	Irregular: think → thought
92	did not wear	did + not + V1
93	Did / find	Question: Did + subject + V1
94	became	Irregular: become → became
95	began	Irregular: begin → began
96	brought	Irregular: bring → brought
97	bought	Irregular: buy → bought
98	caught	Irregular: catch → caught
99	did not do	did + not + V1
100	went	Irregular: go → went

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Quick Reference: Key Rules

Rule	Explanation
Positive	Subject + V2 + Object
Negative	Subject + did + not + V1
Question	Did + subject + V1?
All subjects	Same V2 form (I went, She went, They went)
Was	I, He, She, It
Were	You, We, They
Regular verbs	Add -ed (play → played)
Irregular verbs	Must memorize (go → went)
Specific past time	yesterday, last week, ago, in 2020

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Common Irregular V2 Forms to Remember

V1	V2	Nepali
go	went	गएको
eat	ate	खाएको
see	saw	देखेको
do	did	गरेको
write	wrote	लेखेको
take	took	लिएको
give	gave	दिएको
come	came	आएको
buy	bought	किनेको
read	read	पढेको
speak	spoke	बोलेको
break	broke	भाँचेको
drink	drank	पिएको
know	knew	थाहा भएको
begin	began	सुरु गरेको
get	got	पाएको
make	made	बनाएको
say	said	भनेको
tell	told	भनेको
think	thought	सोचेको
find	found	भेटेको
leave	left	छोडेको
meet	met	भेटेको
run	ran	दौडेको
sit	sat	बसेको
sleep	slept	सुतेको
stand	stood	उभिएको
swim	swam	पौडी खेलेको
win	won	जितेको
lose	lost	हारेको