Past Perfect

Past Perfect

HadHadn't Past participle

Home

1. When to use it

2. Rules

3. Language & Culture

5. Affirmartive Contractions

4. Affirmative Sentence

6. Negative Sentence

7. Negative Contractions

8. Clarification

9. Informal Speech

1. When to use it

1 past action precedes another past action

It describes an action that ocurred before a specific time in the past.

• The meeting had ended before we arrived

2. Rules

Rule 1

Form the past perfect with the auxiliary verb had.

• She
• He
• It

• I
• You
• We
• They

had

Rule 2

Always use the past participle form of verbs

Some regular verbs

• call called called
• Open opened opened
• Study studied studied

Some irregular verbs

• Go went gone
• Come came come
• Meet met met

Past of the past

1 action before the past

Auxiliary

Had

Past participle

Third column verbs

3. Language and culture

In British English, the past forms of some words can be regular or irregular!

4. Affirmative Sentence and Time Markers

dancedgone bought

IYou We They She He It

had

already

By 4 o'clock...

6. Negative Sentences and Time Markers

dancedgone bought

IYou We They She He It

When it started...

not

yet.

had

7. Negative contractions

IYou We They She He It

not

hadn't

had

8. Clarification

perfect

Past

Simple

past

Use the past perfect with the simple past tense or the past of be to clarify which of two past actions ocurred first.

The meeting had began late,

01

First the meeting began, then we had lunch.

so we didn't have lunch until 2

02

By the time the tour was over,

01

First Ann and Kazulo met; then the tour was over.

Ann had already met Kazuko

02

9. informal Speech

In informal speech, you can use the simple past tense instead of the past perfect when the words by, before, and after make the order of events clear.

By April he started his new job

Past simpleI studied marketing.

Past simpleBefore I got married,

Past simple they promoted her

Past simpleAfter she made the presentation,