All past tenses – English Grammar Test for B2
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Reading Passage
Last summer, I travelled to Italy with my two best friends. We had planned the trip for months, and by the time we finally got on the plane, we were all very excited. We stayed in Rome for three days, and during that time we visited many famous places such as the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the Vatican Museums. While we were walking through the streets of Rome, we often stopped to take pictures and enjoy Italian ice cream.
One afternoon, while we were exploring a small street, we met a local man who told us a story about his family. He said his grandfather had lived in the same house for more than fifty years before he passed away. The man himself had been working as a guide for nearly a decade when we met him, and he loved sharing stories with visitors.
After Rome, we travelled to Florence. By then, we had already seen many historical sites, but Florence still amazed us. We spent hours in the Uffizi Gallery, looking at Renaissance paintings. On our last day, it rained heavily, but we didn’t mind because we had already planned to spend the day in cafés, writing postcards and relaxing.
When the holiday ended, we felt both happy and sad. We had enjoyed every moment, but we also knew that it had been one of the best trips of our lives.
1 Where did the narrator travel last summer?
2 Who did the narrator travel with?
3 How long had they planned the trip before flying?
4 How did they feel when they got on the plane?
5 How many days did they stay in Rome?
6 Which famous places did they visit in Rome?
7 What were they doing while walking through the streets of Rome?
8 What did they enjoy eating in Rome?
9 Who did they meet one afternoon in a small street?
10 What did the local man tell them about his grandfather?
11 How long had the man’s grandfather lived in the house?
12 What job had the man been doing for nearly a decade?
13 What did the man love to do with visitors?
14 Where did they travel after Rome?
15 Had they already seen many historical sites before Florence?
16 What amazed them in Florence?
17 What did they see in the Uffizi Gallery?
18 How long did they spend in the Uffizi Gallery?
19 What was the weather like on their last day in Florence?
20 Did they mind the heavy rain?
21 What had they already planned for the rainy day?
22 Where did they spend that rainy day?
23 What did they do in the cafés?
24 How did they feel when the holiday ended?
25 Why did they feel happy?
26 Why did they feel sad?
27 How did they describe the whole trip?
28 Which tense was used to describe the background action “walking through the streets”?
29 Which tense was used to show an action before another past action “the train had already left” type? (Find an example in the text).
30 Which tense was used to emphasize duration before another action “he had been working as a guide for nearly a decade”?
Answer
1 Italy – Past Simple “I travelled to Italy.”
2 Two best friends – Explicitly mentioned.
3 For months – Past Perfect Continuous idea: “We had planned the trip for months.”
4 Very excited – Past Simple description.
5 Three days – “We stayed in Rome for three days.”
6 Colosseum, Roman Forum, Vatican Museums – Listed in text.
7 They often stopped to take pictures and enjoy ice cream – Past Simple/Continuous.
8 Italian ice cream – Stated clearly.
9 A local man – Introduced in story.
10 His grandfather had lived in the same house… – Past Perfect.
11 More than fifty years – Explicitly in passage.
12 He had been working as a guide – Past Perfect Continuous.
13 Loved sharing stories with visitors – Past Simple.
14 Florence – After Rome.
15 Yes – “By then, we had already seen many historical sites.”
16 Florence itself amazed them – Past Simple.
17 Renaissance paintings – “Looking at Renaissance paintings.”
18 Hours – They spent hours in the gallery.
19 It rained heavily – Past Simple.
20 No – “We didn’t mind.”
21 To spend the day in cafés, writing postcards, relaxing – Past Perfect.
22 In cafés – Explicitly mentioned.
23 Writing postcards and relaxing – Past Continuous/description.
24 Happy and sad – Mixed emotions.
25 Because they had enjoyed every moment – Past Perfect.
26 Because the trip was ending – Past Simple idea.
27 One of the best trips of their lives – Direct quote.
28 Past Continuous – “While we were walking…”
29 Past Perfect – Example: “His grandfather had lived…”
30 Past Perfect Continuous – “He had been working as a guide…”