Le preterit Be+V-ing
On utilise le prétérit be+V-ing pour décrire une action qui était en cours dans le passé. On le forme à l'aide de l'auxiliaire be au prétérit suivi de la base verbale à laquelle on ajoute -ing.
| Forme Affirmative | Forme Interrogative | Forme Négative |
| I was listening to music. | Was I listening to music? | I was not listening to music. |
| You were listening to music. | Were you listening to music? | You were not listening to music. |
| He/ She/ It was listening to music. | Was he/ she/ it listening to music? | He/ She/ It was not listening to music. |
| We were listening to music;. | Were we listening to music? | We were not listening to music;. |
| You were listening to music; | Were you listening to music? | You were not listening to music; |
| They were listening to music. | Were they listening to music? | They were not listening to music. |
Combiné au prétérit simple, le prétérit be+V-ing renvoie à l'action en cours de déroulement et permet de poser le cadre à l'action décrite par le prétérit simple.