Past Perfect

FUNCTIONS OF THE "PAST PERFECT"

The "past perfect" refers to a time before the recent past.

 It is used to indicate that an event occurred before another in the past.

It does not matter which of the events is mentioned first, because the verb tense

 makes clear the temporal order in which they occurred.

In these examples, Event A is the one that first occurred and Event B took place next, it is

 the most recent:

Event A Event B

John had gone out when I arrived in the office.

Event A Event B

I had saved my document before the computer crashed.

Event B Event A

When they arrived we had already started cooking.

Event B Event A

I was very tired because I had not slept well.

FORMATION OF THE "PAST PERFECT"

In English, the "past perfect" is composed of two parts:

the past of the verb to have (had) + the "past participle" of the main verb.

Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMKMT9JSX3k

Exercise

Past Perfect - Positive and Negative

1) When I arrived at the cinema, the film (start). [ . ]
2) She (live) in China before she went to Thailand. [ . ]
3) After they (eat) the shellfish, they began to feel sick. [ . ]
4) If you (listen) to me, you would have got the job. [ . ]
5) Julie didn't arrive until after I (leave). [ . ]
6) When we (finish) dinner, we went out. [ . ]
7) The garden was dead because it (be) dry all summer. [ . ]
8) He (meet) her somewhere before. [ . ]
9) We were late for the plane because we (forget) our passports. [ . ]
10) She told me she (study) a lot before the exam. [ . ]
11) The grass was yellow because it (not/rain) all summer. [ . ]
12) The lights went off because we (not/pay) the electricity bill. [ . ]
13) The children (not/do) their homework, so they were in trouble. [ . ]

English 3A