The Past Perfect Formula

Subject + had + [past participle].

*It doesn’t matter if the subject is singular or plural; the formula doesn’t change.

When to Use the Past Perfect

When you’re talking about some point in the past and want to reference an event that happened even
earlier, using the past perfect allows you to convey the sequence of the events. It’s also clearer and more
specific. Consider the difference between these two sentences:
Example :
We were relieved that Tootles used washable paint. (“We were relieved that Tootles was in the habit of
using washable paint.”)
We were relieved that Tootles had used washable paint. (the past perfect makes it clear that you’re talking
about a specific instance of using washable paint.)

Another time to use the past perfect is when you are expressing a condition and
a result:
Example :
If I had woken up earlier this morning, I would have caught Tootles red-handed.
The past perfect is used in the part of the sentence that explains the condition (the if-clause).

Most often, the reason to write a verb in the past perfect tense is to show that
it happened before other actions in the same sentence that are described by
verbs in the simple past tense. Writing an entire paragraph with every verb in
the past perfect tense is unusual.

When Not to Use the Past Perfect

Don’t use the past perfect when you’re not trying to convey some sequence of events.
If your friends asked what you did after you discovered the graffiti, they would be confused if you said:
Example :
I had cleaned it off the door.

They’d likely be wondering what happened next because using the past perfect implies that your action of
cleaning the door occurred before something else happened, but you don’t say what that something else
is. The “something else” doesn’t always have to be explicitly mentioned, but context needs to make it
clear. In this case there’s no context, so the past perfect doesn’t make sense.

How to Make the Past Perfect Negative

Making the past perfect negative is simple! Just insert not between had and [past participle].

We looked for witnesses, but the neighbors had not seen Tootles in the act. If Tootles had not included his
own name in the message, we would have no idea who was behind it.
How to Ask a Question
The formula for asking a question in the past perfect tense is had + [subject] + [past participle].

Had Tootles caused trouble in other neighborhoods before he struck ours?

Past Perfect Forms

The past perfect is formed using Subject + had + past participle.

Questions are indicated by inverting the subject and had. Negatives are made with not.
Examples :
Statement: You had studied English before you moved to New York.
Question: Had you studied English before you moved to New York?
Negative: You had not studied English before you moved to New York.

Past Perfect Uses

Completed Action Before Something in the Past

The past perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action in the past. It can also
show that something happened before a specific time in the past.
Examples:
I had never seen such a beautiful beach before I went to Kauai.
I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
Tony knew Istanbul so well because he had visited the city several times.
Had Susan ever studied Thai before she moved to Thailand?
She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
Kristine had never been to an opera before last night.
We were not able to get a hotel room because we had not booked in advance.
Had you ever visited the U.S. before your trip in 2006?
Yes, I had been to the U.S. once before.

Duration Before Something in the Past (Non-Continuous Verbs)

past perfect duration

With non-continuous verbs and some non-continuous uses of mixed verbs, we use the past perfect to
show that something started in the past and continued up until another action in the past.
Examples:
We had had that car for ten years before it broke down.
By the time Alex finished his studies, he had been in London for over eight years.
They felt bad about selling the house because they had owned it for more than forty years.
Although the above use of past perfect is normally limited to non-continuous verbs and non-continuous
uses of mixed verbs, the words "live," "work," "teach," and "study" are sometimes used in this way even
though they are NOT non-continuous verbs.

Unlike with the present perfect, it is possible to use specific time words or phrases with the past perfect.
Although this is possible, it is usually not necessary.
Example:
She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.

If the past perfect action did occur at a specific time, the simple past can be
used instead of the past perfect when "before" or "after" is used in the
sentence. The words "before" and "after" actually tell you what happens first,
so the past perfect is optional. For this reason, both sentences below are
correct.
Examples:
She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.
She visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.
past perfect without specific time

If the past perfect is not referring to an action at a specific time, past perfect is
not optional. Compare the examples below. Here past perfect is referring to a
lack of experience rather than an action at a specific time. For this reason,
simple past cannot be used.
Examples:
She never saw a bear before she moved to Alaska. Not Correct
She had never seen a bear before she moved to Alaska. Correct

ADVERB PLACEMENT
The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just,
etc.
Examples:
You had previously studied English before you moved to New York.
Had you previously studied English before you moved to New York?

ACTIVE / PASSIVE
Examples:
George had repaired many cars before he received his mechanic's license. Active
Many cars had been repaired by George before he received his mechanic's license. Passive

he Past Perfect Simple Tense

Useful Tip
Time Expressions in the Past Perfect Simple

The time expressions already, for, since, and yet may be used in the past perfect simple, as they are in the present perfect simple.
Remember the following rules for using other time expressions:

 Use after, as soon as, the moment that, until before using the past perfect simple.
Ex: After she had moved out, I found her notes./ I didn’t say anything until she had finished talking.
 Use before, when, by the time before the past simple:
Ex. Before I knew it, she had run out the door. / By the time he phoned her, she had found someone new.

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 The past perfect simple is used to describe one action that happened before another action in the past.
In many cases a complete sentence is written in two parts with two different tenses:

1. The past perfect simple, to refer to the action that happened first or earlier
2. The past simple to refer to the action that happened second or later

Sometimes the past perfect simple is used on its own and the action that took place afterwards is understood.

1. After Sofie had finished her work, she went to lunch.

(First she finished her work and then she went to eat lunch.)
2. I washed the floor when the painter had gone.
(First the painter left and then I washed the floor.)
3. Harold had known about it for a while.
(First he knew about it, then others knew about it)

The past perfect simple tense is formed by using the auxiliary verb had together with the V3 (past participle). The V3 (past
participle) form of a regular verb looks just like a regular verb in the past simple:

1. walk > walked / study > studied / stop > stopped / create > created

There are quite a few irregular verbs in English though. It pays to memorize them.

Subject had +Verb(V3) Rest of Sentence

(Past Participle)

I / You / We / had met him before he became famous

They
He / She / It
had lived here for three years by the time we met

Note: The order of phrases may be switched, but the meaning will stay the same.

1. By the time Doris got to the party, everyone had gone home.
2. Everyone had gone home by the time Doris had got to the party.

Note: Had Had – A verb combination that often causes confusion in the past perfect simple is had had. Ex. I had had enough to eat
but I wanted dessert anyway. The first had is the auxiliary (or helping) verb and the second had is the V3 (or past participle) of the
main verb to have. It means that even though I ate enough, I wanted dessert after that. It may look strange, but it is correct.

Contractions in the Past Perfect Simple

Punctuation Tip
When you begin a sentence with a time expression, put a comma (,) after the first part of the sentence.
We often contract the subject (the person or thing that had done the action) and had:

1. I had > I’d – After I’d used the phone, I paid the bill.

2. He had > He’d / She has > She’d / It has > It’d – It’d happened so quickly, I didn’t notice.
3. We had > We’d / You have > You’d /They are > They’d – We’d just gotten home, when we heard the blast outside.

Negative Sentences in the Past Perfect Simple Tense

When creating negative sentences, we use the auxiliary verbs hadn’t (had not) together with the V3 (past participle) form of the
verb. You can also create a negative sentence by using the auxiliary verb had with the time expression never and then the V3.
 Subject Auxillery Verb Verb in V3 Rest of Sentence
(Past Participle)

I / You / We / hadn’t (had driven a car before then

They not)
He / She / It

had never driven a car before then

1. I had not eaten at that restaurant before today.

2. Samantha hadn’t had time to explain her side of the story.
3. My friends hadn’t ever gone to France.
4. My friends had never gone to the USA either.

Yes/No Questions in the Past Perfect Simple

To create a question that will be answered with a yes or no, start the question with Had (Hadn’t for a negative question) then add a
subject (the person or thing that had done the action) followed by the V3 (Past Participle) form of the verb and only then add the
rest of the sentence.

Auxiliary Subject Verb in V3 Rest of Sentence

Verb (Past
Participle)

Had I / you / we / had time to rehearse you’re

they the song
he / she / it

Had he / she / it eaten there before

1. Had you cleaned up the mess by the time they came home?

2. Had Adam ever spoken to the CEO before he was fired?

Wh-Questions in the Past Perfect Simple

Wh- questions are questions that require more information in their answers. Typical wh- words are what, where, when, why, who,
how, how many, how much.
To create a wh-question, start with the wh-word, then add had, then the subject (a person or thing that had done the action),
followed by the V3 (Past Participle) form of the verb and only then add the rest of the sentence.

Wh- Auxiliary Subject Verb in V3 Rest of Sentence

Word Verb (Past
Participle)

What had I / you / we / taught before leaving

they education
 Wh- Auxiliary Subject Verb in V3 Rest of Sentence
Word Verb (Past
Participle)

Why had he / she / it changed the subject

1. What had they said that made him so angry?

2. Why had he agreed to work for that salary?
3. How much had he drunk before you got to him?

Tag Questions in the Past Perfect Simple

Tag questions are those short questions that are tagged onto the end of a sentence. They are used just to make sure that the
person you’re talking to understood what you meant or to emphasize what you said.
They’re formed by writing a regular sentence in the past perfect simple, then by adding hadn’t and a pronoun (I, you, we, they, he,
she, it) and a question mark.

1. John had known about the cancer for a couple of years, hadn’t he?
2. They had been in business together, hadn’t they?

You may also add a positive tag when you’re using a negative sentence.

1. Jennifer hadn’t spoken to you about it, had she?

2. They had never eaten a proper Indian meal, had they?

As a rule: When the sentence is positive, the tag is negative.

When the sentence is negative, the tag is positive.