Le Preterit en BE-ING (Past Continuous) en Anglais
Mis a jour le 1 avril 2026 • Verifie par Karine, coach anglais certifiee
Lecture 22 min
Le past continuous : narrer des evenements avec precision
Le preterit en be-ing (past continuous) permet de decrire des actions qui etaient en cours dans le passe, de narrer des scenes et d'exprimer des actions paralleles ou interrompues. C'est la cle d'une narration professionnelle vivante.
Cabinet Action vous aide a maitriser le past continuous pour des presentations et rapports percutants. Formation CPF eligible, coach natif.
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Quiz
Testez vos connaissances
Quiz Vrai / Faux
1. 'I were working' est correct
Reponse : Faux. Pour I, on utilise WAS (pas WERE). Correct : I was working.
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Mots a trouver
WHILE
DURING
ACTION
CONTEXT
SCENE
REPORT
MEETING
WORKING
Formation du past continuous
| Element | Explication | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| Quoi ? | Past continuous = WAS/WERE + verbe-ING | I was working |
| Formation | WAS (I/he/she/it) + WERE (we/you/they) + -ING | She was speaking / They were meeting |
| Action en cours | Decrit une action en cours dans le passe | At 9am, I was reviewing the report |
| Interruption | Action interrompue par une autre | I was working when he called |
| Actions paralleles | Deux actions simultanées dans le passe | She was presenting while he was taking notes |
| Ambiance / scene | Decrire le contexte d'une narration | It was raining and the team was waiting |
Formation du preterit en be-ing
Formation du past continuous
Le preterit en be-ing (past continuous) se forme avec WAS ou WERE + le verbe en -ING. WAS s'utilise avec I, he, she, it. WERE s'utilise avec you, we, they.
I was writing the report. / She was attending a meeting. / They were negotiating the contract.
La negation : wasn't / weren't + -ING. La question : Was/Were + sujet + -ING ?
| Sujet | Affirmatif | Negatif | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | I was working | I wasn't working | Was I working? |
| He/She/It | She was presenting | She wasn't presenting | Was she presenting? |
| You | You were listening | You weren't listening | Were you listening? |
| We | We were planning | We weren't planning | Were we planning? |
| They | They were negotiating | They weren't negotiating | Were they negotiating? |
Usages et structures
Past Continuous vs Preterit Simple
Mise en situation - Incident en reunion
Manager : What were you working on when the system crashed?
Collegue : I was finalising the presentation when it suddenly went offline. I had been updating the slides for 2 hours.
Manager : And where was John? Was he helping you?
Collegue : No, he was on a call with the client while I was working on the slides. We were both dealing with critical tasks.
| Structure | Exemple | Explication |
|---|---|---|
| WHEN + preterit (interruption) | I was working when he called | Action en cours interrompue par une action soudaine |
| WHILE + past continuous | While I was presenting, she was taking notes | Deux actions en cours simultanement |
| WAS/WERE + -ING (contexte) | It was raining and clients were waiting | Decrire la scene ou le contexte |
| Preterit + past continuous (sequence) | She arrived while we were having lunch | Arrivee pendant une action en cours |
| Negation (absence d'action) | He wasn't paying attention during the meeting | Il n'etait pas en train de faire attention |
WHEN et WHILE : interruption et simultaneite
WHEN et WHILE avec le past continuous
| Contexte professionnel | Exemple past continuous | Traduction |
|---|---|---|
| Rapport d'incident | The server was running normally when the outage occurred | Le serveur fonctionnait normalement quand la panne est survenue |
| Compte-rendu | At 3pm, the team was still debating the proposal | A 15h, l'equipe debattait encore la proposition |
| Bilan | While you were presenting, the board was taking detailed notes | Pendant votre presentation, le conseil prenait des notes detaillees |
| RH | She was performing exceptionally well when she was promoted | Elle performait exceptionnellement bien quand elle a ete promue |
| I was reviewing the contract when I noticed the discrepancy | Je relisais le contrat quand j'ai remarque l'ecart |
Narration au past continuous
Narration au past continuous
Le past continuous est essentiel pour la narration car il permet de peindre le tableau d'une situation. Il cree une scene de fond sur laquelle les evenements (preterit simple) se produisent.
The meeting was going well. Everyone was listening attentively. Then, suddenly, the fire alarm went off.
Cette technique est tres utile pour les rapports d'incident, les comptes-rendus et les presentations d'analyse retrospective.
| Erreur | Correction | Explication |
|---|---|---|
| She was work | She was working | WAS/WERE + verbe en -ING |
| I were working | I was working | WERE uniquement avec you/we/they |
| He was worked | He was working | Past continuous : -ING, pas preterit |
| Was they meeting? | Were they meeting? | WERE avec they (pas WAS) |
| She wasn't worked | She wasn't working | Negation : wasn't + -ING |
| While she presented | While she was presenting | WHILE + past continuous pour action en cours |
Choisir entre past simple et past continuous
Exercices interactifs
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Continuez a apprendre
FAQ - Le preterit en be-ing (past continuous)
Comment former le preterit en be-ing (past continuous) ?
Le past continuous se forme avec WAS (I/he/she/it) ou WERE (you/we/they) + le verbe en -ING. Exemples : I was working. She was presenting. They were negotiating. Negation : wasn't/weren't + -ING. Question : Was/Were + sujet + -ING?
Quelle difference entre le past continuous et le preterit simple ?
Le preterit simple decrit une action terminee (I wrote the report). Le past continuous decrit une action qui etait en cours a un moment precis du passe (I was writing the report when he called). Le past continuous insiste sur la duree et le fait que l'action etait en cours.
Comment utiliser WHEN et WHILE avec le past continuous ?
WHEN + preterit simple s'utilise quand une action soudaine interrompt une action en cours : I was working WHEN he called. WHILE + past continuous s'utilise pour deux actions simultanees : WHILE she was presenting, he was taking notes.
Peut-on utiliser le past continuous pour le contexte d'une histoire ?
Oui ! Le past continuous est ideal pour 'peindre le tableau' d'une situation narrative : It was raining and the team was waiting anxiously. This creates the background scene against which the main events (preterit simple) happen.
Le past continuous est-il utilise en anglais professionnel ?
Oui, notamment dans les rapports d'incident, comptes-rendus et analyses retrospectives : The server was running normally when the outage occurred. The team was still debating when the decision was made.
Comment distinguer 'was working' de 'worked' ?
'Was working' = action en cours, pas terminee (I was working on it all morning). 'Worked' = action terminee (I worked on it and sent it). La nuance est importante : 'was working' n'implique pas que la tache etait finie.
Peut-on utiliser le past continuous pour des actions repetees ou habituelles ?
En general non, c'est plutot le preterit simple ou 'used to'. Mais avec 'always' pour exprimer une irritation ou une habitude agacante dans le passe : He was always arriving late to meetings.
Comment dire 'j'etais en train de' en anglais ?
'J'etais en train de' = I was + -ING. Exemples : J'etais en train de travailler = I was working. Elle etait en train de presenter = She was presenting. Nous etions en train de negocier = We were negotiating.
Quels les adverbes en anglais s'utilisent avec le past continuous ?
At the time (a ce moment-la), at that moment (a ce moment precis), at 3pm, still (toujours/encore), meanwhile (entre-temps), while (pendant que), already (deja) : At 3pm, we were still discussing the figures.
Comment utiliser le past continuous dans un rapport d'incident ?
Mentionner ce qui se passait au moment de l'incident : The system was running normally when the crash occurred. The team was finalising the report when the network went down. This establishes the context clearly and professionally.
'Were they meeting?' est-il correct ?
Oui, tout a fait. Question au past continuous : Were/Was + sujet + -ING? Were they meeting? Was she presenting? Were you working? La reponse : Yes, they were. / No, they weren't.
Past continuous avec 'just about to' ?
Yes! 'Was/were about to + infinitive' exprime une action sur le point de commencer : I was about to call you. She was just about to leave. We were about to sign when they cancelled.