You may have a good grasp of the present perfect tense, and have also read our previous newsletter on the past continuous tense. This week, however, we are going to talk about the past perfect, also known as the pluperfect.

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Similar to the past continuous (was/were + verb in -ing form), the past perfect is very helpful when we are putting events that occurred in the past in chronological order. It is formed with had + past participle, so, for example, to give becomes had given, to go becomes had gone, and to write becomes had written.

The King asked her what had given her such a fright.

Caption 42, Fairy Tales - The Frog King

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From the sentence above, we know that whatever scared the princess occurred before the king asked her about it. And unlike the phrase what was giving her such a fright, the phrase what had given her such a fright with the past perfect tells us that the action is finished, in other words she is no longer scared.

Now look at the example below, in which a reporter asks Prince Harry a question about Meghan Markle:

So, how much did you, Prince Harry, know about Meghan?

Had you seen her on TV?

Captions 68-69, BBC News - Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

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The construction had + past participle informs us that the reporter is asking about something that happened before Harry and Meghan met. Additionally, while using the simple past (did you see) would refer to watching Meghan on TV on a regular basis, the past perfect (had you seen) asks whether it ever happened in Harry's life, even one time.

Take a look at two more examples and determine which action occurred first. Note the contraction he'd in the second example, which is a combination of he and had rather than he and would. 

After everyone had gone, she was alone in the house.

Caption 29, Fairy Tales - Cinderella

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In his new role, he visited many EU countries he'd previously condemned.

Caption 43, Boris Johnson - The UK's New Controversial Prime Minister

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Further Learning
In addition to keeping your eye out for more examples of the past perfect on Yabla English, you can make a list of verbs in their infinitive form and make sure you know the past participle of each one. Refer to our previous lesson on expressing the conditional in English, which covers the use of the past perfect in the creation of Conditional III.   

You likely know the present continuous ("I am sitting at the table," "He is going to the grocery store"), but how familiar are you with the past continuous? 

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The past continuous is often used to set the scene and provide context when talking about the past:

I was working in the theatre in England.

Caption 13, Donald Sutherland - Talks Career and Hollywood

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A very typical structure with the past continuous and simple past tenses together occurs when one action or event in the past interrupts another action that is already in progress. 

There she encountered an old woman who was sitting at a spinning wheel.

Caption 32, Fairy Tales - Sleeping Beauty

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In this example, it is clear that the woman already began doing what she was doing ("sitting at a spinning wheel") before Sleeping Beauty entered the room. In each of the following examples, one action was already happening when the other occurred:

But when the Princess opened her eyes the next morning,

she was surprised that a good-looking prince was standing there.

Captions 26-27, Fairy Tales - The Frog King

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I'm sorry, I was eating chips. What did you say?

Caption 12, The Ellen Show - Ellen Inspired Adele's New Song

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Further Learning
To get more context for the phrases, watch the videos above on Yabla English. Make sure you understand which action came first. For a thorough description with more examples, you can also refer to this page. 

English learners often have some trouble mastering when to use the present perfect tense and when to use the simple past tense. There are some instances where they are indeed interchangeable, but most often the choice between these two tenses is crucial for conveying the meaning of a sentence.

The present perfect is used when a situation, action, or state is not finished or concluded yet. Let’s look at the following two sentences from Yabla English:

She has lived an extraordinary life of public service.

Caption 36, Barack Obama - On Trump Presidential Victory

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And I lived on a boat for three and a half years.

Caption 8, Great Pacific Garbage Patch - Let's Work for Solutions

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In the first example, Barack Obama used the present perfect to indicate that Hilary Clinton has not finished serving the public and will continue to do so in the future. Her life of public service is ongoing. In the second example, the simple past tense makes it clear that the person speaking does not live on the boat anymore. If they used “I have lived” we would know that they are still living on the boat today.  

One clue for knowing which tense to use is that certain words like "since," "ever," and "never" are only used in sentences with the present perfect, whereas "ago," "yesterday," "last week" and "last month" indicate finished periods of time that require the simple past tense. 

We saw so many incredible places.

Caption 2, New Zealand 100% Pure - New Zealand, Home of Middle-earth

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They were the most persistent tigers I've ever seen.

Caption 30, The Marx Brothers - Capt. Spaulding's African Adventures

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In the second sentence above, Captain Spaulding means “I’ve ever seen in my life.” Because he is still living, and it is possible he may see tigers that are even more persistent in the future, the situation is considered unresolved and the present perfect is used.

For the next sentence, note that “this project made a huge difference” would mean that the project is finished, whereas how it is written makes it clear that it is, in fact, ongoing:

There's no doubt that this project has made a huge difference.

Caption 36, WWF: Making a Difference - Rhino Conservation

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In British English, the tenses are more interchangeable. For example, the present perfect is often used when talking about an event that is finished, but happened very recently. 

I have just been to Buckingham Palace.

Caption 1, BBC News - Theresa May: First Speech as Prime Minister

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However, in American English, there are also cases where either tense is applicable. The following sentence is an example in which either tense could be used. This is because the mistake is a finished act, but the situation surrounding the mistake is ongoing.

You really think we made a mistake?

The continuous (or progressive) tense comprises two parts: the verb "to be" in the present, past, or future tense, combined with the present participle of the main verb. It is a common verbal form in the English language, actually more common than the simple tense in the spoken language.

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Let's find an example on Yabla English of the present continuous tense:

Time is running out.

Caption 29, George Clooney - Video Diary from Sudan and Chad

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To form the above present continuous tense, the present tense of the verb "to be" ("is") is combined with the present participle of the verb "to run" (by adding "ing," or in this case "-ning") to the end of the verb. The present continuous tense expresses something that is presently incomplete or unfinished. In the above case, there is still time enough now, but soon there will not be.

And the past continuous tense:

I was laughing so hard.

Caption 42, Jim White - Interview

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To form the above past continuous tense, the past tense of the verb "to be" ("was") is combined with the present participle of the verb "to laugh." The past continuous tense expresses something that is incomplete or unfinished in the past. In the above case, laughing was occurring during a past event.

And lastly, the future continuous tense:

This is where you will be working from.

Caption 14, The Company - Starting on a New Job

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To form the above future continuous tense, the future tense of the verb "to be" ("will be") is combined with the present participle of the verb "to work." The future continuous tense expresses something is incomplete or unfinished that will happen in the future. In the above case, work will be performed at some point in the future.

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Further Learning
Take a look at this list of basic verb forms, and search Yabla English for some of your favorite English present participle verbs (ending in -ing) and see these tenses used in a real-world context.

The simple tense, in its present, past and future forms, is called "simple" because it consists of just one word, unlike other verb tenses such as present progressive and present perfect. The first-person form of the simple present tense is almost always the same as the dictionary form of the verb.

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With the verb "to write," for example, the simple present tense in first person is "I write."

Well, when I write songs...

Caption 27, Bee and Flower - Interview

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In the simple past tense, the basic form "write" changes to "wrote." Some basic verbs just add "-ed" to become past tense, but many are irregular and must be learned.

I wrote this song.

Caption 35, Rise Up and Sing - Recording the Song

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The simple future tense consist of adding "will" (or "shall") before the verb:

Tammy will write a song and then record it on her laptop.

Caption 92, Royalchord - Interview

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Further Learning 
Take a look at this list of basic verbs and their irregular simple past tenses, and search Yabla English for some of your favorites to see how they are used in context.