We usually make the simple past by adding -ed to the end of the verb.
(Example)
(1) I walk --> I walked
(2) we wait --> we waited
(3) they jump ---> they jumped
Many common verbs have irregular simple past forms, and so you have to use a special ending or change the verb in some other way.
(Example)
(1) I go ---> I went
(2) we buy ---> we bought
(3) they see ---> they saw
We use the simple past to talk about an action which happened and finished in the past. There is a space between the time the action happened and the time when you are speaking or writing about it.
(Example)
(1) He kicked the ball into the net.
(2) I went home early because I had a headache.
(3) The police found a dead body in the river.
(NOTE) We often use words and phrases such as at midnight, on Tuesday, in 1992, and last year with the simple past, to draw attention to the time when something happened.
(Example)
(1) Our visitors arrived yesterday.
(2) Where did you go last week?
(3) The war ended in 1945.
