Narrative Tenses

Narrative Tenses

What Are Narrative Tenses?

Narrative tenses are the verb tenses we use when telling or writing stories about the past. They help us organise events clearly and show how actions relate to one another — what happened first, what was happening in the background, and what had already happened before another event.

In this lesson, you’ll learn the four main narrative tenses used in British English, see how they work in context, and understand how combining them makes stories clearer, more natural, and more engaging.

Past Simple

Use: to describe completed actions in the past – the main events or actions in a story.

• She opened the door and walked in.
• I saw him at the station yesterday.

Past Continuous

Use: to describe a background action or something that was in progress at a particular moment in the past. Often used to set the scene or describe the situation before the main event.

• It was raining when we left the house.
• She was reading a book when the phone rang.

Past Perfect Simple

Use: to talk about an action that happened before another action or time in the past. It helps to make the order of events clear.

• She had already left when I arrived.
• I didn’t recognise him because he had changed so much.

Past Perfect Continuous

Use: to describe a longer action or situation that was ongoing in the past before another past event. Often used to show duration or continuity.

• He had been working all day, so he was exhausted.
• They had been arguing for hours before they finally made up.

Using a variety of narrative tenses helps to:

• make your story clearer and more engaging
• show the sequence of events (what happened first, second, etc.)
• set the scene and describe background events
• explain causes or reasons for something

Example in Context:

It was a cold evening and the wind was blowing hard. I had just finished work and was walking home when I heard a strange noise. I had been thinking about my plans for the weekend and didn’t notice someone following me…

✔️ Past Simple → “heard”, “finished”

✔️ Past Continuous → “was blowing”, “was walking“

✔️ Past Perfect → “had just finished”

✔️ Past Perfect Continuous → “had been thinking“

Common Mistakes with Narrative Tenses

Overusing Past Simple and ignoring background tenses

Learners often tell an entire story using only the Past Simple. This makes the narrative flat and unclear. Use the Past Continuous to set the scene and the Past Perfect to show earlier events.

Using Past Perfect when it isn’t needed

The Past Perfect is only necessary when the order of events is unclear. If the sequence is obvious, the Past Simple is usually enough.

Confusing Past Perfect Simple and Past Perfect Continuous

Use the Past Perfect Simple for completed actions (had finished), and the Past Perfect Continuous to show duration or ongoing activity (had been working).

Using stative verbs in continuous forms

Avoid forms like was knowing or had been believing. Stative verbs are not normally used in continuous tenses.

Cambridge examiner tip

In Cambridge B2 First and C1 Advanced writing tasks, examiners look for controlled and purposeful use of narrative tenses, not complexity for its own sake. Strong candidates use the Past Continuous to set the scene, the Past Perfect to clarify earlier events, and the Past Simple to move the story forward. Using two or three different narrative tenses naturally and accurately will score higher than forcing advanced forms that don’t clearly improve the story.

Download the narrative tenses worksheet (PDF) and practise at your own pace.

Try the quiz to check your understanding

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