The Past Perfect tense in English is composed of two parts: the past tense of the verb to have (had) + the past participle of the main verb.
[had + past participle]
Examples:
USE : 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:
Other Examples:
Positive Negative Question
I had finished. I had not finished. Had I finished?
You had finished. You had not finished. Had you finished?
[had + past participle]
Examples:
- You had studied English before you moved to New York.
- Had you studied English before you moved to New York?
- You had not studied English before you moved to New York.
USE : 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 Bali.
- I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
- Tony knew Kuala Lumpur 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.
Other Examples:
Positive Negative Question
I had finished. I had not finished. Had I finished?
You had finished. You had not finished. Had you finished?
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