We use the past perfect to show clearly that one past event happened before another past event. We use the past perfect for the earlier event.
When I arrived at the party, Tom wasn't there. He had gone home *
The past perfect is formed with the auxiliary verb had and the past participle (third column in the list of irregular verbs). Question are formed by inverting the subject and had. Negatives are formed with not. Contracted forms are used.
(?) Had Kate gone to bed when you arrived home?
(+) Yes, she had. She had gone to bed when I arrived home. / She'd gone to bed (-) No, she hadn't. She hadn't gone to bed when I arrived home
The past perfect (I had done) is the past of the present perfect (I have done). Compare these situations:
| Present | Past |
|---|---|
| I'm not hungry. I've just had breakfast. | I wasn't hungry. I'd just had breakfast. |
| Your room is dirty. You haven't cleaned it. | You room was dirty. You hadn't cleaned it for months. |
The past perfect is often used with verbs of thinking like to think, know, be sure, realize, remember, suspect, understand etc.
She was sure she hadn't locked the door
When I got home I realized I'd left my computer at Starbucks
Note that it is not necessary to use the past perfect if we use before or after to make the time sentence clear, although many speakers do so to show a strong connection between the two events.
Pam left her house before her parents arrived (past simple)
Pam had left her house before her parents arrived (past simple + past perfect)
–Why didn't Ann take Spanish classes last semester?
–Because she'd taken them at the beginning of her studies.
–Had she completed the course successfully?
–Yes, she had! She'd passed it with a perfect score! She hadn't done a single mistake!
–Wait, I heard that she didn't pass the exam.
-I don't know what you're talking about. The teachers had never been so happy to have a student like her.
-Maybe that's not Ann I'm talking about... I've forgotten the name of the girl.
Use before or after.
It was 11 o'clock when Pete left for his night shift. You came home at midnight. Pete had gone .................... you came back.
It was 8 a.m. when the lessons started. You came to school twenty minutes earlier. Lessons had started .................... you came to school.
It was a busy afternoon for you. But in the evening you had a nice bath. You had a nice bath .................... you had had a busy afternoon.
Write the correct sentence.
they/just/to finish/their dinner). she/just/to go/out). I/not to see/him/for 3 years). the movie/already/to begin). Answer the questions.