sat/was sitting

Not slight but is a huge difference.

first sentence shows simple past (he sat) meas when you arrived you saw him seated.

second shows , when you arrived he was siting (but not seated) just at the moment when you arrived.

AvidlearnerNot slight but there is a huge difference. The first sentence shows simple past (he sat) means when you arrived you saw him seated. The second shows , when you arrived he was sitting (but not seated) just at the moment when you arrived.

This is not clear at all.

Wowenglish Is there a slight

WowenglishHe was sitting on the couch with a frown on his face.

I believe this is the one you want.

For verbs of body posture (sit, stand, kneel, lie), the simple form shows what happens or happened; the continuous form shows how the person is or was in terms of the position or posture of the body.

First we stand. (action; motion) After tha

fivejedjonWhile there is possibly no difference intended, #1 could mean that he sat down after the speaker arrived. #2 means that he sat down before I arrived.

Surprisingly surprising

confused

Who is not?

I sat (down) when he arrived - I moved into a sitting position at or soon after the time of his arrival. We commonly use 'down' here.

I was sitting (down) when he arrived - I had moved into a sitting position before the time of his arrival. We use 'down' less commonly here, but it's possible.

I was sitting down when he arrived - I was in the process of moving

getting clear,thks