The Past Perfect Tense

The form of the past perfect tense is easy to understand:
it always has two parts: had and the past participle
(“third form”) of the verb:

had asked         had arisen
had begged         had been
had checked         had cost
had dropped         had driven

In the past perfect, the auxiliary had is often contracted to ‘d:

I had —> I’d                   we had —>we’d
you had —> you’d         you had —> you’d
he / she / it had —>
he’d / she’d / it’d             they had —>they’d

The past perfect refers to a time earlier than before now. It is used to make it clear that one event happened before another in the past. It does not matter which event is mentioned first – the tense makes it clear which one happened first.

The Past Perfect tense in English is composed of two parts: the past tense of the verb to have (had) + the past participle of the main verb.

Subject     +   had     +   past participle

Affirmative
She     had     given

Negative
She     hadn’t     asked.

Interrogative
Had     they     arrived?

Interrogative Negative
Hadn’t     you     finished?

Affirmative                Negative               Interrogative
I had decided          I hadn’t decided            Had I decided?
You had decided     You hadn’t decided       Had you decided?
She had decided     She hadn’t decided       Had she decided?
We had decided      We hadn’t decided        Had we decided?
They had decided    They hadn’t decided     Had they decided?

Past perfect + just

‘Just’ is used with the past perfect to refer to an event that was only a short time earlier than before now, e.g.

    The train had just left when I arrived at the station.
    She had just left the room when the police arrived.
    I had just put the washing out when it started to rain.

Past or Past Perfect Tense – Simple: Fill in the correct form.

1. Mary ___________________ (give) me Tony’s address before she left.
2. When the boys arrived at the cinema, the film ___________________ (already, start).
3. Before we reached the station we saw that we ___________________ (lose) our way.
4. All the tickets ___________________ (be) sold before the concert began.
5. They took a shower after they ___________________ (finish) the game.
6. I asked Mr Green how many books he ___________________ (read)
7. Mum asked me why I ___________________ (not tidy) up my room.
8. Bob was sorry that he ___________________ (told) me the story.
9. Alan watched TV after he ___________________ (have) lunch.
10. The sun ___________________ (shine) yesterday after it ___________________ (be) cold for many
weeks.
11. Uncle David ___________________ (go) to the doctor after he ___________________ (be) ill for a
month.
12. Before the police ___________________ (catch) the thief, he ___________________ (steal) two
more watches.
13. Mum once ___________________ (paint) a picture although she ___________________ (never,
learn) it.
14. I ___________________ (not tell) my teacher that my mum ___________________ (help) me with
my homework.
15. I ___________________ (be) very angry when I ___________________ (see) that my brother
___________________ (eat) my apple.
16. The bike ___________________ (be) much more expensive than he ___________________ (think)
at first.
17. Dad ___________________ (drive) me home after I ___________________ (fall) into the water.
18. Marion ___________________ (ask) me what ___________________ (happen) to me last week.
19. We ___________________ (eat) two Big Macs before we ___________________ (go) home.
20. Paul ___________________ (not say) that he ___________________ (take) Albert’s watch.
21. The days ___________________ (become) colder after it ___________________ (snow).
22. Martin ___________________ (tell) me that he ___________________ (be) in London.
23. I ___________________ (feel) great after I ___________________ (pass) the exam.
24. It ___________________ (be) Freddy who ___________________ (clean) the room.
25. When I ___________________ (get) off the bike I ___________________ (see) that one of those
tires ___________________ (lose) air.
26. I ___________________ (be) sorry that I ___________________ (not be) nicer to him.
27. Nobody ___________________ (come) to the meeting because Angela ___________________
(forget) to tell them about it.
28. I know that I ___________________ (see) her somewhere before.
29. Because she ___________________ (not check) the oil for so long, the car ___________________
(break) down.
30. She couldn’t find the book that I ___________________ (lend) her.
31. They never ___________________ (never find) where he ___________________ (hide) the money.
32. It was a firm that I ___________________ (never hear) of.
33. When she ___________________ (come ) in we all knew where she ___________________ (be)
34. The lesson ___________________ (already start) when I ___________________ (arrive).
35. When I ___________________ (get) to the park I found out that I ___________________ (lose) my
keys.
36. She told me that she ___________________ (work) in Germany.
37. When he ___________________ (paint) the kitchen he ___________________ (decide) to have a
rest.
38. After I ___________________ (finish) the report, I saw that it ___________________ (be) too late.

Past simple and past perfect
 Complete the story with the words in brackets.

Lost in Dublin
It ……………………………… (be) 11 o’clock. Carol Parker …………………………………. (arrive) at the
Shaw Hotel five minutes before. She …………………………… (try) to find the hotel several times.
Carol …………………………. (never be) to Dublin, but she ……………………………………………………..
(always want) to visit this unique Irish city. She ……………………… (have) a detailed map
in her hanbag, but she ………………….. (cannot) read it. She …………………….. (call) the reception
and ………………………. (ask) about the way, but it ……………………………. (not help) her. Finally,
Carol ………………………… (find) the hotel. She was dying for a cup of tea and a hot shower.
She …………………………….. (get lost) a couple of times before, but she …………………………………
(never feel) so miserable. It …………………………. (not be) a good start of her holiday in Ireland.

Past simple and past perfect
 Answer the questions. Use the words in brackets.
Example: Why did he call you? (because – just arrived) – He called me because he had just arrived.

When did they return? (after – visit all the museums)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Why didn’t he eat anything? (because – have lunch)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
When did the party start? (as soon as – Jackie – bring the cake)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
What did he tell her? (that – see her before)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
When did they land? (when – the storm – end)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Why was he so angry? (because – have an argument with Sue)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
What did you forget? (that – want to buy some bread)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Why did she decide to help you? (after – my dad – tell her)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
What did you say? (that – never do it before)
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
When did she leave? (as soon as – finish her work)
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Past simple and past perfect
 Complete the text with the words in brackets.

When I …………………………….. (be) 18 years old I ………………………………… (decide) to spend some time
in America. But until I …………………………… (save) enough money I …………………………………. (not tell)
anybody. My mum …………………………………………… (be shocked), because we …………………………………
(never be) abroad. At that time I ……………………… (have) a penfriend in Vermont for nearly three years
and I ………………………………….. (always want) to see her. I ………………………… (know) that my English
…………………. (be) very good as I …………………………… (pass) Cambridge exams with grade A.
Before I ……………………………. (start) to write to Wendy, it ……………………………………….. (never come)
to my mind that I could go to the States on my own. But after I ……………………………………… (decide) to
set off I just …………………………. (have) to go.