Short/contracted forms and long forms in the Past Progressive

How to use short/contracted forms in Past Progressive

We use short/contracted forms of auxiliaries in spoken English. The Past Progressive is formed with the auxiliary to be (was, were), so short/contracted forms are only possible in negative sentences.

1. Affirmative forms

Pronouns	Long forms	Contracted forms
I	I was reading	not possible
you	you were reading
he, she, it	he was reading
we, you, they	they were reading

2. Negative forms

Pronouns	Long forms	Contracted forms
I	I was not reading	I wasn't reading
you	you were not reading	you weren't reading
he, she, it	he was not reading	he wasn't reading
we, you, they	they were not reading	they weren't reading