The past perfect tense is used to describe an action or event that occurred before another action or event in the past. It is formed with the auxiliary verb “had” and the past participle of the main verb. The structure of the past perfect tense is:

Subject + had + past participle of main verb

For example:

• She had finished her work before she went home.
• He had already eaten dinner by the time I arrived.

The past perfect tense is often used to show the sequence of events in the past. It is commonly used in conjunction with the simple past tense to describe a series of actions that took place in the past.

Examples:

• I had already taken a shower before I went to bed.
• She had studied for hours before taking the test.
• They had been living in the city for five years before they moved to the countryside.

It is also used to describe an action that was completed before a specific point in the past.

Examples:

• By the time he arrived, she had already left.
• They had finished their project by the deadline.

The past perfect tense can also be used to express regrets or wishes about something that did not happen in the past.

Examples:

• If I had known about the traffic, I would have left earlier.
• I wish I had studied more for the exam.

There are two main types of past perfect tense:

1. Simple Past Perfect Tense

The simple past perfect tense is used to describe a completed action that took place before another action in the past. It is formed with the auxiliary verb “had” and the past participle of the main verb.

Examples:

• She had finished her work before she went home.
• He had already eaten dinner by the time I arrived.
• They had watched the movie before they went to bed.

2. Past Perfect Continuous Tense

The past perfect continuous tense is used to describe a continuous action that started in the past and continued up until another action in the past. It is formed with the auxiliary verb “had been” and the present participle of the main verb.

Examples:

• She had been studying for hours before taking the test.
• They had been living in the city for five years before they moved to the countryside.
• He had been working on the project all day before he finally finished it.

The past perfect tense is commonly used in storytelling and narrative writing to describe events that occurred before the main action of the story. It is also used in academic writing to describe the chronology of events or to establish cause and effect relationships between past events.

Examples:

• The detective had interviewed several witnesses before he solved the case.
• The researchers had conducted numerous studies before they published their findings.

In conclusion, the past perfect tense is used to describe completed actions that occurred before another action in the past. It is formed with the auxiliary verb “had” and the past participle of the main verb. There are two main types of past perfect tense: the simple past perfect tense and the past perfect continuous tense. The past perfect tense is commonly used in storytelling and academic writing to describe the chronology of events and establish cause and effect relationships between past events.

Worksheet 1

1. By the time we arrived at the restaurant, they _____ all the food. a) ate b) had eaten c) were eating
2. She _____ the book before she saw the movie. a) read b) had read c) was reading
3. He _____ for five hours before he finally got some rest. a) had been working b) worked c) was working
4. They _____ the game before it started to rain. a) played b) had played c) were playing
5. I _____ my keys before I left the house. a) lost b) had lost c) was losing
6. The concert _____ by the time we arrived. a) ended b) had ended c) was ending
7. She _____ her homework before she went to bed. a) finished b) had finished c) was finishing
8. They _____ in the park for an hour before it started to get dark. a) walked b) had walked c) were walking
9. He _____ his phone before he left for the airport. a) forgot b) had forgotten c) was forgetting
10. The train _____ when we arrived at the station. a) left b) had left c) was leaving

Worksheet 2

1. By the time she arrived, I ________ all the work. (had completed / completed / was completing)
2. They ________ the movie before they went to bed. (had watched / watched / were watching)
3. I ________ the package before the delivery man came. (had received / received / was receiving)
4. He ________ his homework before he went to the party. (had finished / finished / was finishing)
5. They ________ dinner before they left the restaurant. (had eaten / ate / were eating)
6. She ________ the book before she saw the movie. (had read / read / was reading)
7. We ________ for hours before we finally found the solution. (had searched / searched / were searching)
8. The sun ________ before we arrived at the beach. (had set / set / was setting)
9. The game ________ before they arrived at the stadium. (had started / started / was starting)
10. I ________ my keys before I left the house. (had lost / lost / was losing)
11. She ________ her phone before she left for the party. (had charged / charged / was charging)
12. They ________ their vacation before they started their new job. (had taken / took / were taking)
13. He ________ for the company for ten years before he retired. (had worked / worked / was working)
14. We ________ before the storm hit. (had left / left / were leaving)
15. The movie ________ before we got to the theater. (had started / started / was starting)
16. She ________ to France before she started learning French. (had been / was / had)
17. They ________ the party before we got there. (had left / left / were leaving)
18. He ________ his breakfast before he left for work. (had finished / finished / was finishing)
19. We ________ the city before the traffic got too bad. (had left / left / were leaving)
20. The store ________ before we got there. (had closed / closed / was closing)