THE PAST PERFECT TENSE

1

• THE PAST PERFECT TENSE
• Form Past tense of TO HAVE (had) past
  participle

2

• Uses
• Action which began in the past before the time of
  speaking in the past and
• Was still continuing at that time
• e.g. Bill was in uniform when I met him. He had
  been a soldier since he was 17, and planned to
  stay in the army till he was thirty.
• b) Stopped at that time or just before it
• e.g. Peter, who had waited for an hour, was very
  angry when his sister finally appeared.
• c) Stopped some time before speaking
• e.g. He had served in the army for 10 years. Then
  he retired and married.

3

• Action which began in the past before some other
  past action
• e.g. On the New York Stock Exchange the Nasaq
  index had opened higher, but fell back to 1,578
  in morning trading.
• BEFORE / AFTER
• e.g. The police caught the thieves after they had
  left the house.
• e.g. The thieves had tied the old lady before
  they left the house.

4

• - The past perfect is often used with verbs of
  thinking (know, realise, remember, be sure,
  think)
• e.g. David knew hed seen her somewhere before.
• When I got to the office I realised Id
  left all my papers behind.
• - Compare
• Sue left at 2 pm. We arrived at her office at
  2.30.
• When we arrived at Sues office, she had left.

5
THE PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSEhad been
present participle
6

• Uses
• A situation that was in progress up to a certain
  point in the past. It often emphasises the
  duration of time.
• e.g. Before he left IBM Plattaner had been
  putting together a software package for the
  UK-based chemical company ICI.
• Looking back from a point of time in the past.
  The past perfect continuous looks back at a
  situation in progress.
• e.g. The economic situation was quite healthy.
  The central bank had lowered interest rates
  because inflation had been falling steadily for
  several years.

7

• Underline the correct words. This exercise
  includes examples of the past perfect. used to,
  the past simple and past continuous.
• 1 While I looked/was looking for my keys, I
  suddenly remembered I left/had left them at home.
  
• 2 In those days the unions used to/had used to
  go on strike whenever there was/was being a
  problem.
• 3 After they were buying/had bought the
  company, they started/were starting to make a lot
  of people redundant.
• 4 Jack used to have/was having a Mac, but then
  he used to change/changed to a Pc.
• 5 I asked about my package in reception, but
  they said/were saying that it still hadn't
  arrived/wasn't arriving.
• I was sure that I used to lock/had locked the
  door to my office last night, but it was/had been
  open this morning.
• I'm sure that the winters used to be/had been
  colder when I was a child. I remember that we
  used to walk/were walking to school in the snow
  every winter.
• I had gone/went back to the restaurant to look
  for my umbrella, but found/was finding that
  someone took / had taken it.
• When George saw/was seeing Diane at the seminar,
  he knew/was knowing that he met/had met her
  somewhere before.
• While I had/was having breakfast I looked/was
  looking at the financial pages to see the share
  prices. I saw/was seeing that my original
  investment grew/had grown by over 40.

8

• 1 I (arrive) in England in the middle of July. I
  (be) told that England (be) shrouded in fog all
  year round, so I (be) quite surprised to find
  that it was merely raining. 2 I (ask) another
  passenger, an Englishman, about the fog and he
  (say) that there (not be) any since the previous
  February. 3 If I (want) fog, he said, I (come) at
  quite the wrong time. 4 However, he (tell) me
  that I could buy tinned fog at a shop in
  Shaftsbury Avenue. 5 He (admit) that he never
  (buy) fog there himself but (assure) me that they
  (sell) good quality fog and that it (not be)
  expensive. I suppose he (joke).

9

• 1 When the old lady (return) to her flat she
  (see) at once that burglars (break) in during her
  absence, because the front door (be) open and
  everything in the flat (be) upside down. 2 The
  burglars themselves (be) no longer there, but
  they probably only just (leave) because a
  cigarette was still burning on an ornamental
  table. 3 Probably they (hear) the lift coming up
  and (run) down the fire escape. 4 They (help)
  themselves to her whisky too but there (be) a
  little left, so she (pour) herself out a drink. 5
  She (wonder) if they (find) her jewellery and
  rather (hope) that they had. 6 The jewellery (be)
  given her by her husband, who (die) some years
  before. 7 Since his death she (not have) the
  heart to wear it, yet she (not like) to sell it.

10

• 1 When I (open) the door I (see) a man on his
  knees. 2 He clearly (listen) to our conversation
  and I (wonder) how much he (hear). 3 When I (ask)
  him what he (do), he (say) that he (drop) a 50p
  piece outside the door and (look) for it. 4 I
  (not see) any sign of the money, but I (find) a
  small notebook and pencil which he probably
  (drop) when the door (open) suddenly. 5 So he
  (take) notes of our conversation! 6 The notes
  (be) written in a foreign language, so I (turn)
  to the stranger and (ask) him to translate. 7 But
  he (pull) my hat over my eyes and (run) off down
  the corridor. 8 By the time I (recover) from the
  shock he (disappear) round the corner. 9
  Curiously enough, when I (move) my foot I (find)
  that I (stand) on a 50p piece. 10 Perhaps he
  (tell) the truth after all!