Use of Was: Questions about Continuous Action

In this lesson, we shall learn how to use ‘was’ to ask questions about continuous action. We use ‘was’ with I, he, she, it, and any other singular subject in the past tense.

Construction of a question about continuous action using ‘was’

The formation of this question is as follows:

• Was + subject (I/he/she/it/singular number) + present participle (-ing form) of verb + other words + question mark (?)

Examples of ‘was’ in a question

Let’s see how to use ‘was’ in the questions with some examples.

Here are some examples. The construction is as above.

Have a look-

1. Was Sarika going to her home town? 
    (main verb go+ ing)
2. Was he reaching the airport to receive his parents?
   (main verb come+ ing)
3. Was she studying in a college library?
   (main verb study+ ing)
4. Was he teaching philosophy?  
   (main verb teach+ ing)
5. Was it eating fruit under a tree?
   (main verb eat+ ing)
6. Was Shalaka observing the painting?
   (main verb observe+ ing)
7. Was Saurabh carrying his tiffin?
   (main verb carry+ ing)
8. Was a cat playing on the roof?
   (main verb play+ ing)
9. Was she stitching a gown?
   (main verb stitch+ ing)
10. Was he collecting postage stamps?
    (main verb collect+ ing)
11. Was she fixing a gas cylinder?
    (main verb fix+ ing)
12. Was he fetching water from a water tanker?
    (main verb fetch + ing)
13. Was she solving an example of Mathematics?
    (main verb solve+ ing)
14. Was he calling you yesterday?
    (main verb call+ ing)
15. Was Dr. Sarika diagnosing the patient’s condition?
    (main verb diagnose+ ing)
16. Was she examining the types of plants?
    (main examine+ ing)
17. Was a dog waiting for food?
    (main verb wait+ ing)
18. Was Rati inquiring about a psychiatrist?
    (main verb inquire+ ing)
19. Was she classifying vegetables?
    (main verb classify+ ing)
20. Was a monkey chasing the dog?
    (main verb drink+ ing)
21. Was the maid asking about her salary?
    (main verb chase+ ing)
22. Was a lion licking its wound?
    (main verb lick+ ing)
23. Was a parrot speaking with us?
    (main verb speak+ ing)
24. Was she painting her house?
    (main verb paint+ ing)
25. Was he choosing a dress for his son?
    (main verb choose+ ing)*
26. Was Rati clarifying the issue?
    (main verb clarify+ ing)
27. Was Soham thinking of joining the party?
    (main verb think+ ing)
28. Was Parth deciding to work from Monday?
    (main verb decide+ ing)
29. Was Rashi developing an educational website?
    (main verb develop+ ing)
30. Was she packing a gift for her brother?
    (main verb pack+ ing)

Related Lessons-

1. Use of were
2. Were- negative sentences
3. Use of was: continuous
4.                           questions
5.                        affirmative answers
6.                       negative answers 

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