The core idea — the habit that drove you mad
You know that feeling when someone does something over and over again, and it starts to grate on your nerves? Maybe a colleague who was always late. A flatmate who was constantly borrowing your things. A manager who was forever telling long stories. Someone who was continually interrupting you.
This is the fourth use of the Past Continuous — and it is one of the most expressive. We use was/were + always/constantly/forever/continually + verb-ing to describe a past behaviour that was repeated so frequently it became annoying, surprising, or characteristically associated with that person.
The key is the emotional charge. This structure almost always implies a reaction — irritation, affection, amusement, or exasperation. It is not just describing frequency; it is commenting on it.
The four adverbs — and what they signal
always — the most common; mild to moderate irritation or affection: He was always forgetting things.
constantly — stronger; emphasises relentlessness: She was constantly complaining.
forever — slightly informal; often exasperated or wry: He was forever losing his keys.
continually — more formal; emphasises that it never stopped: They were continually interrupting.
The structure
He was always leaving his cups on the desk.
She was forever losing her keys — we had to hide a spare.
They were constantly arguing about the smallest things.
He was continually interrupting people mid-sentence.
Position of the adverb: always between was/were and the -ing verb.
The difference from Past Simple with "always"
Both the Past Simple and the Past Continuous can be used with always, but they carry very different meanings:
Past Continuous + always = emotional reaction
He was always forgetting his keys.
→ Implies irritation or a characteristic trait. The speaker has a reaction to this behaviour. It happened so often it defined the person.
Past Simple + always = neutral habit
He always forgot his keys.
→ A neutral statement of fact. Simply reporting that forgetting was habitual. No strong emotional charge.
Affirmative sentences
- He was always leaving his dirty cups on the desk instead of washing them up.
- The neighbors were constantly complaining about the noise, even when there wasn't any.
- She was forever losing her keys — we hid a spare set under the doormat for her.
- He was continually interrupting people mid-sentence — nobody could finish a thought.
- She was always turning up late to meetings, no matter how many times we asked her not to.
Negative sentences
The negative form softens or qualifies the claim — saying the behaviour was not as frequent or universal as suggested.
He wasn't always leaving them on purpose — it was just a bad habit.
They weren't constantly arguing when I was around.
- She wasn't always forgetting to reply — just when she was very busy.
- She wasn't forever losing everything — just her keys specifically.
- He wasn't continually interrupting everyone — mostly those he disagreed with.
- The children weren't constantly making a mess everywhere — only in the kitchen.
- Our manager wasn't forever telling long stories — he was just enthusiastic.
Interrogative sentences
Was he always forgetting things? · Were they constantly arguing?
Wh- questions: Question word + was/were + subject + adverb + verb-ing + ?
What was he always leaving on the desk?
Why were those two always arguing?
What was your manager forever telling you?
- What was he always leaving on the desk?
- Were the neighbors constantly complaining?
- Why were those two always arguing?
- What was your flatmate always borrowing?
- Why was she always turning up late?
Key signals for this use
Common mistakes to watch out for
✗ He was leaving always his keys somewhere.
✗ Always he was leaving his keys somewhere.
✓ He was always leaving his keys somewhere.
In this structure the adverb must sit between was/were and the -ing verb — not before was/were and not after the main verb. Think of it as a three-part unit: was/were + adverb + verb-ing. The adverb cannot move out of this position.
✗ He always forgot his keys and it drove everyone mad. (misses the tone)
✓ He was always forgetting his keys and it drove everyone mad.
When you want to express that a repeated behaviour was annoying, surprising, or characteristic — not just a neutral fact — use the Past Continuous. The Past Simple with always simply reports. The Past Continuous with was/were always adds emotional colour. Look for clues like it drove me mad, nobody could believe it, it was so typical of him.
✗ He used to always forget his keys and it drove me mad.
✓ He was always forgetting his keys and it drove me mad.
Used to is neutral — it simply describes a past habit that no longer exists. It does not carry the emotional weight of annoyance or affection. When the feeling matters, use the Past Continuous + always/constantly/forever/continually. Used to and this structure are not interchangeable when emotion is part of the meaning.
✗ She was always knowing the answer before anyone else.
✓ She always knew the answer before anyone else.
As always, stative verbs (know, believe, want, love, hate, understand, own, remember) cannot be used in the continuous form — even in this expressive structure. If you want to highlight a surprising repeated mental state, use the Past Simple with always.