Common Grammar Mistake: Incorrect Use of Past Tense Verbs

Hey, what's up? Stefanie The English Coach here  from englishfulltime.com I have been wanting to  

make this video for so many years. First of all,  this video is going to be about a grammar mistake,  

okay? Very simple but important grammar mistake  that I have heard so much and that's why I'm  

making this video. So, first of all let me ask you  a question. Which sentence sounds correct to you?  

I didn't saw him or I didn't see him? Okay, the  correct version is I didn't see him. Now, you may  

know this already, however this is one of those  mistakes where students know the correct version  

but then when it comes to speaking they still mess  up. So this is the simple past tense the negative  

form, right, like I didn't do this, I didn't do  that, and what students want to do is because  

it's in the past right they want to conjugate  the main verb in the past as well like I didn't  

saw him but that's not correct. We actually say  I didn't see him. So you have to use the present  

tense or you could say the infinitive form of the  verb to construct these sentences accurately and  

correctly. And what we're going to do is I'm just  going to drill a bunch of these sentences because  

I really want to get the sounds of it in your  head. The reason why native speakers don't make  

this mistake is because we've been hearing the  correct conjugation since birth so it doesn't  

even occur to us to say it in incorrectly. But  when you're learning grammar in school sometimes  

the way it's taught and everything they don't help  you get the patterns in your mind they just give  

you the rule and then they expect you to speak  based on the rule but that doesn't really work.  

So I'm a big believer in learn the pattern, learn  the pattern, learn the pattern, drill the pattern,  

drill the pattern, drill the pattern, get it in  your head. So that's exactly what I'm going to  

try to do in this video. I want you to hear many  sentences, many sentences in the correct format  

so you can really get these sounds in your head.  So if you have to listen to this video multiple  

times to make sure you get these sounds drilled  into your head and you know these patterns drilled  

into your head perfect also I'm going to link my  notes in the description so you can download them,  

highlight them, practice them, read them out  loud. If you read this page out loud every single  

day for a month probably not even just one week  that will really help you so much to stop making  

this mistake, okay, so without further ado let's  just get into it. Let's practice. First of all,  

all it's incorrect to say didn't knew didn't saw  and didn't wrote. It should be didn't know, didn't  

see, and didn't write. So the simple present tense  is I eat breakfast, I don't eat breakfast, right,  

very easy. That's the simple present. The simple  past is I ate breakfast yesterday, okay or I  

didn't eat breakfast so I ate I didn't eat I ate  I didn't eat that's the past tense. Now we have  

didn't eat, didn't need, didn't see, didn't want,  didn't go. Try to say that, okay. Say it with me  

pause the video, do something, but say it with  your own mouth so you can start practicing the  

pattern and getting used to it, okay didn't eat,  didn't need, didn't see, didn't want, didn't go,  

didn't eat, didn't need, didn't see, didn't want,  didn't go, didn't eat, didn't need, didn't see,  

didn't want, didn't go, hopefully that comes  out easily and you're not trying to say didn't  

ate didn't need it okay, because as you know now  that's incorrect. Now we have another exercise.  

We're gonna say I eat, I didn't eat. I need, I  didn't need. I see, I didn't see. I want, I didn't  

want. I go, I didn't go. So here we're going from  positive present tense to negative past tense,  

okay I eat, I didn't eat. I need, I didn't need. I  see, I didn't see. I want, I didn't want. I go, I  

didn't go. Okay so practice that, repeat that like  five to ten times, okay great. Now we're gonna do  

sentences. We have 25 sentences, so I didn't  go to the party I didn't go to the party not I  

didn't went. I didn't go to the party. She didn't  have enough time she didn't have enough time not  

she didn't had right, she didn't have, she didn't  have enough time okay. Now I'm gonna stop saying  

the incorrect version because I don't want to  confuse you. I just want to drill the correct  

version he didn't say anything he didn't say  anything he didn't say anything. They didn't do  

their homework they didn't do their homework they  didn't do their homework. We didn't understand the  

problem we didn't understand the problem we didn't  understand the problem. She didn't become a doctor  

she didn't become a doctor she didn't become  a doctor. The bus didn't come on time the bus  

didn't come on time the bus didn't come on time.  I didn't find my keys in the house I didn't find  

my keys in the house I didn't find my keys in the  house. She didn't get the job she didn't get the  

job she didn't get the job. He didn't give me the  information he didn't give me the information he  

didn't give me the information. They didn't go on  vacation they didn't go on vacation they didn't go  

on vacation. They didn't leave on time they didn't  leave on time they didn't leave on time. We didn't  

make anything for dinner we didn't make anything  for dinner we didn't make anything for dinner. We  

didn't meet at the cafe we didn't meet at the cafe  we didn't meet at the cafe. They didn't take the  

money they didn't take the money they didn't  take the money. She didn't write the book she  

didn't write the book she didn't write the book.  He didn't break her heart he didn't break her  

heart he didn't break her heart. She didn't choose  the outfit she didn't choose the outfit she didn't  

choose the outfit. We didn't drive to the beach  we didn't drive to the beach we didn't drive to  

the beach. They didn't speak about the issue they  didn't speak about the issue they didn't speak  

about the issue. We didn't need his help we didn't  need his help we didn't need his help. They didn't  

help us they didn't help us they didn't help us.  We didn't talk about it we didn't talk about it  

we didn't talk about it. They didn't play at the  park they didn't play at the park they didn't play  

at the park. We didn't study last night we didn't  study last night we didn't study last night. Okay  

now we're going to do a question and answer  exercise. Here we go. Did you meet him? No,  

I didn't meet him. Again, did you meet him?  No, I didn't meet him. Did you know her? No,  

I didn't know her. Again, did you know her? No,  I didn't know her. Did you think about it? No I  

didn't think about it. Did you think about it?  No, I didn't think about it. Did you eat it? No,  

I didn't eat it. Did you eat it? No,  I didn't eat it. Did you say anything?  

No, I didn't say anything. Did you say anything?  No, I didn't say anything. Okay, so again,  

these are all exercises that you can listen to and  repeat and practice and print this document, so  

you can read off of it and study it and again get  this right this is a very simple mistake to avoid  

but you are gonna have to get that repetition  and practice in to build the muscle memory and  

to build the pattern in your mind, okay? Okay,  so we're gonna do another question and answer  

exercise, listen you didn't make it this is kind  of like the confused like oh really question you  

didn't make it? No, I didn't make it. You didn't  make it? No, I didn't make it. You didn't see it?  

No, I didn't see it. You didn't see it?  No, I didn't see it. You didn't go there?  

No, I didn't go there. You didn't go there?  No, I didn't go there. You didn't have fun?  

No, I didn't have fun. You didn't have fun?  No, I didn't have fun. You didn't get it? No,  

I didn't get it. You didn't get it? No, I didn't  get it. Now I'm gonna give some positive sentence  

examples listen to the first one and then  I'm gonna explain something about it, okay.  

We did speak with Emily but she declined our offer  okay, we did speak with Emily but she declined our  

offer. When we add the did in there it's kind of  like confirming something. You're like yes we did,  

we did okay it's adding that extra layer of  communication we were just confirming that  

yes we did speak with Emily but she declined  our offer. We did send out the invitations.  

We did send out the invitations. We did send out  the invitations but so far no one has responded.  

We did send out the invitations but so far no  one has responded. He did ask for a raise but  

the company declined his request. He did ask for a  raise but the company declined his request. We did  

see each other at the event but we haven't spoken  since. We did see each other at the event but we  

haven't spoken since. She did go to the party  last night but she didn't come home late.  

She did go to the party last night but she didn't  come home late. Okay, so hopefully you're able to  

see that when it comes to grammar all it is really  is just patterns, patterns, patterns, patterns,  

and that's actually why I love languages because  patterns are easy. If you can learn to assimilate  

the pattern then speaking becomes so much easier  because you're just using patterns, you're not  

actually thinking you're not actually conjugating  in your head as you speak, okay so I actually  

think this is how languages should be taught all  the time from the beginner level to advanced,  

patterns. I mean that's how children absorb  languages they just become aware of patterns but  

alas here we are and most of schools and classes  do not teach language in this way, so you're  

stuck with knowing rules and being able to like  conjugate in your head but not really fully being  

aware of the pattern and then therefore not being  able to speak correctly. So anyways I really hope  

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