was talking vs talked

The phrases 'was talking' and 'talked' are both correct, but they are used in different contexts. 'Was talking' is the past continuous tense, indicating an ongoing action in the past. 'Talked' is the simple past tense, indicating a completed action in the past. The choice between them depends on whether you want to emphasize the ongoing nature of the action or simply state that the action occurred.

Last updated: March 15, 2024 • 3866 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate an ongoing action in the past.

"was talking"

Use 'was talking' when you want to describe an action that was in progress at a specific point in the past. It is formed with the past tense of 'to be' (was/were) and the present participle of the main verb (talking).

Examples:

She was talking on the phone when I arrived.
I was talking to him about the project yesterday.
They were talking about their vacation plans all evening.

Show examples from the web [+]

May 29, 2012 ... “Was talking” vs. “Has been talking”. up vote 1 down vote favorite. 1. An online instructor was asked by a student at the end of their conversation ...
I was talking you were talking he was talking we were talking you were talking they were talking. Pluperfect I had been talking you had been talking he had been ...
Oct 13, 2014 ... Her Son Just Died. She Thought Her Car Radio Was Talking To Her. She Was Right. In an instant... Michelle is a mother who recently was ...
The 10 Cracked Posts Everyone Was Talking About: 5/3 Edition. By Cracked Writers May 03, 2015 83,775 views. Facebook · Twitter; Add to Favorites. Everyone ...

Alternatives:

was speaking
was chatting
was conversing
was communicating
was discussing

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate a completed action in the past.

"talked"

Use 'talked' when you want to describe an action that happened and was completed in the past. It is the simple past tense form of the verb 'to talk'.

Examples:

They talked about their trip to Europe.
She talked to the manager about the issue.
He talked with his friends at the party.

Show examples from the web [+]

Antonyms for talked ... More words related to talked. address ... At times it seemed to her that as he talked he was holding her body in his hands. For five minutes ...
a. To exchange thoughts or opinions in spoken or sign language; converse: We talked for hours. See Synonyms at speak. b. To utter or pronounce words: The ...
Feb 21, 2012 ... I'm often befuddled when I am reading an article and the author uses talked with when referring to a conversation he/she had. I've always used ...
to talk very softly; to talk into a microphone. 6. to deliver a speech, lecture, etc.: The professor talked on the uses of comedy in the tragedies of Shakespeare. 7.

Alternatives:

spoke
chatted
conversed
communicated
discussed

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was talking vs talked

"was talking"

"talked"

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