The Past Perfect Tense is used to express an action that occurred before another action in the past. It often helps to show the sequence of past events. This tense is formed with the past tense of the verb ‘to have’ (had) and the past participle of the main verb.
Structural Formula:
Subject + had + past participle + object.
- Affirmative: Sub. + had + Verb3 + Ob.
- Negative: Sub. + had not + Verb3 + Ob
- Interrogative: had + Sub. + Verb3 + Ob. + ?
Examples:
- She had finished her meal before I arrived.
- They had left the party when we got there.
- I had completed my assignment before the deadline.
- He had seen the movie before, so he didn’t watch it again.
- We had started dinner when he called.
Past Perfect Tense Exercises
1) He _________ dinner by the time I arrived. (had already, already)
2) She _________ tennis with her friends the afternoon before she went to bed. (had played, play)
3) His grandmother _________ dinner when he got home from school that day. (had cooked, cooks)
4) We _________ in the pool before it started raining that afternoon. (had swum, swim)
5) I _________ a book before I went to bed that night. (had read, reads)
6) They _________ to school every day since January the afternoon before she went to bed. (had walked, walked)
7) She _________ home from work on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon. (had cycled, cycle)
8) He _________ for his exams all week long the afternoon before he went to bed. (had studied, studies)
9) The kids _________ with their friends at the park on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon. (had played, play)
10) She _________ a letter to her grandmother the previous day when she woke up. (wrote, writes)
11) We _________ dinner by the time we arrived. (finished, had just finished)
12) The sun ________ shining in the sky when it started raining that afternoon. (had been, had been shining, was shining)
13) I ________ in the pool by the time it started to rain that afternoon. (had been swimming, was swimming, swim)
14) They _________ to school on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon. (had walked, walk)
15) She ________ cycling home from work on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon. (had been bicycling, bicycled, cycle)
16) The girls ________ songs in chorus at 8 pm every evening when it began to rain that afternoon for two hours. (had been singing, is singing, were singing )
17) She ________ dinner at 6 pm every evening before she went to bed later that day. (had been cooking, cooks)
18) He ________ for his exams since January by the time he went to bed that night. (has studied, had been studying, studies)
19) The sun ________ shining in the sky before it started raining that afternoon? (had been, was, had been shining)
20) He _______ dinner when I arrived at 8 pm last night. (had already eaten, eaten)
Answers
1) He had already eaten dinner by the time I arrived.
2) She had played tennis with her friends the afternoon before she went to bed.
3) His grandmother had already cooked dinner when he got home from school that day?
4) We had swum in the pool before it started raining that afternoon.
5) I had read a book before I went to bed that night.
6) They had walked to school every day since January the afternoon before she went to bed.
7) She had cycled home from work on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon?
8) He had studied for his exams all week long the afternoon before he went to bed.
9) The kids had played with their friends at the park on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon?
10) She had written a letter to her grandmother the previous day when she woke up.
11) We had finished dinner by the time we arrived.
12) The sun had been shining in the sky when it started raining that afternoon.
13) I had swum in the pool by the time it started to rain that afternoon?
14) They had walked to school on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon.
15) She had been cycling home from work on most days of the week by the time it started raining that afternoon.
16) The girls had been singing songs in chorus at 8 pm every evening when it began to rain that afternoon for two hours.
17) She had been cooking dinner at 6 pm every evening before she went to bed later that day.
18) He had been studying for his exams since January by the time he went to bed that night.
19) The sun had been shining in the sky before it started raining that afternoon?
20) He had already eaten dinner when I arrived at 8 pm last night.
Explore More:
Structures of All Tenses with Examples (Download Pdf)
Examples of Past Perfect Tense
Past Perfect Tense Worksheets
