The simple past tense is used in 7 situations:

1. A single event that happened and ended at a specific time:

We went to Hoi An three years ago.

The light bulb was invented in 1879.

2. A habit or action that was repeated in the past and is no longer:

Before our son moved away to study, he often helped us look after our store.

The President always stayed up late to read books when he was young.

3. A truth in the past:

Early bicycles had wooden wheels.

4. Things that happened one after another in the past (possibly in a story):

He opened the door, took off his shoes and threw the car keys on the table.

5. An action that took place over a long period of time in the past but has now ended:

He worked as a librarian for a few years.

Obama was the president of the United States for two consecutive terms.

6. Used in conditional sentences to talk about unreal things in the present:

What would the world be like if we didn't have the Internet?

7. Used to express wishes, usually after:

Wish (to talk about a desire): I wish I had more money.

It's time (to talk about something that needs to be done now): It's time the government took action to solve this problem.

Would rather (to talk about a wish in the present): I would rather my father didn't smoke so much when he's at home.

Khanh Linh