Past Continuous Tense Quiz 5 — Question with Full Explanation & Word Meaning To Improve English (Past Progressive Tense)
Past Continuous Tense — Exercise 5 (Q&A with Full Explanation and Vocabulary Builder, Learn English)
This practice test trains you to recognize and use the Past Continuous Tense (was/were + verb-ing) in real contexts. Each question includes the correct past-continuous form, a short verb definition (vocabulary builder + POS notes), and detailed one-sentence explanations for every option (A–D) that tell why the option is correct or incorrect and what choosing it would mean. Practice, prepare and improve both English grammar and vocabulary.
English Grammar Definition: Past Continuous (was/were + verb-ing)
- Form: was / were + present participle (-ing).
- Examples: I was writing; They were waiting; Was she sleeping?
- Main uses:
- Ongoing actions in the past (background actions).
- Actions that were in progress when another action interrupted.
- Parallel past actions (two things happening at the same time).
- Signal words: while, as, at 10 a.m., when, during.
- Negatives / Questions: was/were not (wasn’t/weren’t) + verb-ing; Was/Were + subject + verb-ing?
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Quiz Instructions
- Read each question and choose the best answer out of four given options.
- On top, header section of the quiz, you will see the “title of the quiz,’ ‘spending-time,’ ‘value of question in points,’ and ‘number of questions.”
- Below on footer, you will see Full Screen mode. As the name suggests, it covers the whole screen. It will save a lot of your time attempting the quiz.
- You can zoom the images given in the questions.
- After submitting the quiz, you can see your score and compare with other users.
- The Full Leaderboard link will take you to a page, where you can see all users attempts.
- Below the quiz box, there are explanation of each options. You can study and try again.
- Best of Luck!
Quiz Question, Answer and Explanation
Note: Do remember in the quiz box above, the questions and options will shuffle, so they won’t have the same sequence like 1, 2, 3, or A, B, C as below.
1. We __ stakeholders’ concerns while preparing the presentation.
A) were involving B) involved C) are involving D) have been involving
Verb: involve — verb. To include someone as a necessary part of a process.
Correct: A) were involving
A) Correct: Past continuous — stakeholder engagement was happening as preparation took place; choosing it signals concurrent effort.
B) Wrong: Past simple — denotes completed involvement.
C) Wrong: Present — not past.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — suggests it still continues.
2. She __ reasons for the delay while the team checked constraints.
A) was justifying B) justified C) is justifying D) has been justifying
Verb: justify — verb. To show or prove that something is right or reasonable.
Correct: A) was justifying
A) Correct: Past continuous — justification was ongoing during the constraint checks; choosing it implies an active defence was being made.
B) Wrong: Past simple — would mean justification finished.
C) Wrong: Present — wrong timeframe.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — implies ongoing now.
3. They __ the product launch while regulatory checks were in progress.
A) were launching B) launched C) are launching D) have been launching
Verb: launch — verb. To release or start a product or service publicly.
Correct: A) were launching
A) Correct: Past continuous — launch activities were underway while checks were running; choosing it shows simultaneous steps.
B) Wrong: Past simple — would indicate launch completed, not in progress.
C) Wrong: Present — wrong timeframe.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — implies ongoing now.
4. He __ the device’s location while the team searched the site.
A) was locating B) located C) is locating D) has been locating
Verb: locate — verb. To find the position or place of something.
Correct: A) was locating
A) Correct: Past continuous — the location process was in progress as searching occurred; choosing it signals active tracking.
B) Wrong: Past simple — would state the location was already found.
C) Wrong: Present — not past.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — implies current continuation.
5. While maintenance __ the cluster, performance recovered slowly.
A) was maintaining B) maintained C) is maintaining D) has been maintaining
Verb: maintain — verb. To preserve something in good condition through work or care.
Correct: A) was maintaining
A) Correct: Past continuous — maintenance work was underway during the recovery; choosing it emphasises an ongoing background operation.
B) Wrong: Past simple — would indicate maintenance completed.
C) Wrong: Present — wrong time.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — indicates continuation to present.
6. The operator __ controls carefully while the machine ran.
A) was manipulating B) manipulated C) is manipulating D) has been manipulating
Verb: manipulate — verb. To control or operate something, often in a skillful way.
Correct: A) was manipulating
A) Correct: Past continuous — manipulation was ongoing during machine operation; choosing it shows real-time control.
B) Wrong: Past simple — might indicate a one-time manipulation.
C) Wrong: Present — not past.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — would imply ongoing to present.
7. They __ terms with the supplier while the contract was being drafted.
A) were negotiating B) negotiated C) are negotiating D) have been negotiating
Verb: negotiate — verb. To try to reach an agreement through discussion.
Correct: A) were negotiating
A) Correct: Past continuous — negotiations were in progress in parallel with drafting; choosing it shows simultaneous discussion.
B) Wrong: Past simple — suggests talks finished.
C) Wrong: Present — wrong timeframe.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — implies ongoing today.
8. I __ observations while the experiment was running.
A) was observing B) observed C) am observing D) have been observing
Verb: observe — verb. To watch carefully and record phenomena.
Correct: A) was observing
A) Correct: Past continuous — observation was ongoing for the experiment’s duration; choosing it emphasises continuous monitoring.
B) Wrong: Past simple — implies discrete observations rather than continuous watching.
C) Wrong: Present — not past.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — implies continuation to present.
9. She __ older reports to obtain evidence while legal reviewed the case.
A) was obtaining B) obtained C) is obtaining D) has been obtaining
Verb: obtain — verb. To acquire or get something, often by effort.
Correct: A) was obtaining
A) Correct: Past continuous — evidence acquisition was in progress while review occurred; choosing it emphasises activity in progress.
B) Wrong: Past simple — suggests a one-time acquisition.
C) Wrong: Present — wrong time.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — implies ongoing now.
10. They __ the performance metrics while the load test executed.
A) were validating B) validated C) are validating D) have been validating
Verb: validate — verb. To check or prove the accuracy or correctness of something.
Correct: A) were validating
A) Correct: Past continuous — validation was ongoing during the load test; choosing it means checks were happening in real time.
B) Wrong: Past simple — would mean validation completed, not happening concurrently.
C) Wrong: Present — wrong timeframe.
D) Wrong: Present perfect continuous — indicates continuing now.
