Past Simple Negatives and Questions in Business

1 Making Negatives and Asking Questions in Past Simple

Welcome back! In the last lesson, you learned how to talk about things you did at work using Past Simple. Now let’s learn how to say what you didn’t do and how to ask questions about past work activities.

Let’s start with negatives. When you want to say something didn’t happen in the past, you use didn’t (or did not in formal writing) with the base form of the verb. This works for ALL subjects – I, you, he, she, it, we, they. The formula is simple: subject + didn’t + base verb. For example: ‘I didn’t work yesterday’ or ‘She didn’t call the client.’ Notice that the main verb stays in its base form because didn’t already carries the time signal. You don’t say ‘I didn’t worked’ – that’s wrong!

Here’s an important rule: English doesn’t use double negatives. This means you can’t say ‘I didn’t never go to the meeting.’ Instead, you say ‘I never went to the meeting’ OR ‘I didn’t go to the meeting.’ Choose one negative word, not two!

Now let’s look at questions. For simple yes/no questions, we use this pattern: did + subject + base verb. Think of it as A.S.I. – Auxiliary verb (did), Subject (you, he, we), Infinitive (base verb). For example: ‘Did you work yesterday?’ To give a short answer, use: ‘Yes, I did’ or ‘No, I didn’t.’ You don’t need to repeat the whole verb.

For more complex questions with question words like when, where, what, why, and who, use this pattern: Qu.A.S.I. – Question word + Auxiliary verb (did) + Subject + Infinitive (base verb). Examples: ‘When did you finish the report?’ ‘Where did she meet the client?’ ‘What did they discuss?’

Be careful with the verb ‘be’! Questions with ‘be’ are different. Don’t use ‘did’. Instead, swap the subject and the verb: ‘Was the meeting long?’ ‘Were you at the office yesterday?’ The pattern is: was/were + subject. This is simpler than other verbs!

2 Workplace Conversations: What Did You Do?

Let’s see how colleagues use these questions and negatives when they talk about their work week. Here are two natural conversations you might hear in an office.

Conversation 1: Monday Morning

Tom: Hi Sarah! Did you work on the weekend?

Sarah: No, I didn’t. I needed a break! Did you?

Tom: Yes, I did. I finished the budget report.

Sarah: Oh! When did you send it?

Tom: I didn’t send it. I want to check it today first.

Sarah: That’s smart. Was it difficult?

Tom: No, it wasn’t too bad.

Conversation 2: End of Week Review

Sarah: Did you call the new supplier last week?

Tom: Yes, I did. I called them on Wednesday.

Sarah: Great! What did they say about the prices?

Tom: They didn’t give me final prices. They need more time.

Sarah: Did they say when?

Tom: They promised an answer today. But it didn’t arrive yet.

Sarah: Were they friendly on the phone?

Tom: Yes, they were very professional.

Notice how these colleagues use did to ask about completed actions and didn’t to talk about things that didn’t happen. They also use was and were for questions about the past with ‘be’. The conversations feel natural because they mix different question types – yes/no questions and questions with when, what, and other question words.

3 Andrea’s Business Trip to Milan

Last week, Andrea went on a business trip to Milan for three days. She didn’t travel alone – two colleagues went with her. On Monday morning, they arrived at the airport early. They checked in at the desk and got their boarding passes. Security didn’t take long, and they boarded the flight on time. The plane didn’t have any delays, and they landed in Milan at 11 a.m.

A taxi picked them up at the airport and dropped them off at the hotel. They didn’t go to their rooms immediately. First, they went to a client meeting in the city center. The meeting went well. Andrea presented a new proposal for a big project. The client asked many questions, but they didn’t sign the contract that day. They wanted more time to think.

On Tuesday, Andrea attended a big conference at the conference center. She didn’t miss any important sessions. The keynote speaker in the morning was excellent. In the afternoon, she went to three different networking sessions and met many interesting people. She didn’t have time for lunch!

Wednesday was trade show day. Andrea visited the exhibition and walked around many company booths. She collected information about new products. After the trade show, the client invited them to tour their factory. It was very interesting. That evening, they flew home. Andrea didn’t sleep on the plane because she was too excited. The trip was a big success!

When Andrea returned to the office on Thursday, her manager asked: ‘Did the client sign the contract?’ Andrea smiled and said: ‘Not yet, but they were very positive. They didn’t say no!’

4 Recap: Your Past Simple Question and Negative Toolkit

Great work! You now know how to talk about what didn’t happen and how to ask about past work activities. Let’s remember the key points.

For negatives, use didn’t + base verb for all subjects. The main verb never changes. Remember: no double negatives in English – choose one negative word only!

For yes/no questions, use the A.S.I. pattern: did + subject + base verb. Answer with short answers: ‘Yes, I did’ or ‘No, I didn’t.’

For WH-questions, use Qu.A.S.I.: question word + did + subject + base verb. This helps you ask when, where, what, why, and who questions.

With the verb ‘be’, don’t use did. Just swap the subject and was/were: ‘Was it good?’ ‘Were you there?’

Next time you speak or write about work:

You’re building strong skills for workplace conversations! Keep practicing these patterns and they’ll become natural very quickly.