Past perfect
Look at these examples to see how the past perfect is used.
He couldn't make a sandwich because he'd forgotten to buy bread.
The hotel was full, so I was glad that we'd booked in advance.
My new job wasn't exactly what I’d expected.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
Time up to a point in the past
We use the past perfect simple (had + past participle) to talk about time up to a certain point in the past.
She'd published her first poem by the time she was eight.
We'd finished all the water before we were halfway up the mountain.
Had the parcel arrived when you called yesterday?
Past perfect for the earlier of two past actions
We can use the past perfect to show the order of two past events. The past perfect shows the earlier action and the past simple shows the later action.
When the police arrived, the thief had escaped.
It doesn't matter in which order we say the two events. The following sentence has the same meaning.
The thief had escaped when the police arrived.
Note that if there's only a single event, we don't use the past perfect, even if it happened a long time ago.
The Romans spoke Latin. (NOT
The Romans had spoken Latin.)
Past perfect after before
We can also use before + past perfect to show that an action was not done or was incomplete when the past simple action happened.
They left before I'd spoken to them.
Sadly, the author died before he'd finished the series.
Adverbs
We often use the adverbs already (= 'before the specified time'), still (= as previously), just (= 'a very short time before the specified time'), ever (= 'at any time before the specified time') or never (= 'at no time before the specified time') with the past perfect.
I called his office but he'd already left.
It still hadn't rained at the beginning of May.
I went to visit her when she'd just moved to Berlin.
It was the most beautiful photo I'd ever seen.
Had you ever visited London when you moved there?
I'd never met anyone from California before I met Jim.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Thank you, Peter.
Hello Mike8143,
It's not clear whether or not the dogs stopped barking. You could add some more information to make it clear:
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi,
I came across these two sentences, and I wish to know which one is more grammatical:
He realized he had forgotten his wallet after he had paid for the meal.
I think both could work well knowing that "after" can be followed by either "past perfect" or "past simple" if the sequence of the actions is clear, I mean when it's clear which action took place first as I understood from Advanced Grammar in Use, by Martin Hewings.
I'll be much obliged if you could guide me, sir.
Hello anymanme2,
I would consider the first sentence to be correct. The second sentence doesn't sound incorrect to me, but the first sentence looks a lot more natural.
Thank you.
Shetu Yogme
Hi aymanme2,
Both are possible. I think the first is better because the past simple 'paid' makes it clear that the realisation and the payment happened almost at the same time. The past perfect 'had paid' in the second sentence would be more likely if the action were some time earlier rather than effectively simultaneous.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Dear Team,
Could you please help me understand the usage of the word 'already' with Perfect Tenses?
Does this word have a meaning that the action started some time ago and lasted for some period of time?
Is it possible to use 'already' with the Past Perfect Continious tense? Or should we always specify 'how long' (e.g. for two years, since 10 AM, etc.) if we want to use 'already' + Past Perfect Continuous?
Here are two examples:
Are both of them correct?
Thank you so much for your kind help!
Hello AnChe,
Already is not about how long something lasted. Rather, it used when an action is complete earlier than expected in some way. It's often used when one speaker thinks something hasn't been done yet and the second speaker wants to let them know that (surprise!) it in fact has been done:
We need to get dinner ready. It's getting late.
No need - I've already done it.
Yes, both of those are correct. You can use perfect continuous forms with already when the action is ongoing (unfinished). Of course, context is key here as with all uses of aspect.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Well, it seems a bit confusing. How can it be possible to use ‘already’ with the Past Perfect Continuous Tense (with no additional reference to the time period or duration) if:
‘Already is not about how long something lastted. Rather, it used when an action is complete earlier than expected in some way.’
For the ongoing action there should be something else (e.g. for an hour, etc.)
Hello again AnChe,
It's true that a time period is usual when using perfect continuous forms but it's not strictly necessary:
Here, the action is unfinished (the engine is not fully repaired). A past perfect simple form would suggest otherwise (...I had already repaired it = it is done) so the continuous is necessary. Context, as I said, is key with all aspects in English, and here you have two aspects: continuous and perfect.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team