Talk about the day before today with yesterday.

The idea

Yesterday refers to the previous calendar day. It often appears at the beginning or end of a sentence, usually with the past simple.

Examples

  • I walked to the market yesterday.
  • Yesterday, Maya called her brother.
  • The library closed early yesterday.
  • We planted beans in the garden yesterday.
  • Did you see the rainbow yesterday?
  • The children did not have school yesterday.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic English voice on your device. Quality and availability vary; it does not assess pronunciation.

Watch out

Do not say in yesterday: use yesterday without a preposition.

Try it yourself

  1. Choose the correct answer. Today is Friday. What day was yesterday? (Thursday / Saturday)

    Show answer or example answer

    Thursday

    Thursday: Thursday comes immediately before Friday.

  2. Choose the correct answer. Sam ___ a cake yesterday. (made / makes)

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    made

    made: The finished action took place on the previous day.

  3. Choose the correct answer. We visited the museum ___. (yesterday / tomorrow)

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    yesterday

    yesterday: The museum visit happened on the previous day.

Use it today

Think of something you did yesterday.