Past Perfect refers to a time earlier than before now. It is used to make it clear that one event happened before another in the past. It does not matter which event is mentioned first - the tense makes it clear which one happened first.
12:30
My mother cooked curry.
3:00 pm
I got home.
To express the action that happened first, we are going to use the past perfect. We use simple past for the second action. In this tense, the past participle and simple past forms of the verbs that are going to be needed.
According to the previous explanation, read the following sentence:
My mother had cooked chicken curry before I got home.
As you can see, the first action is written with the auxiliary “had” (which is the past of have) and the main verb in Past Participle (cook – cooked). The second action is written with the main verb in Simple Past (get – got).
Look at these examples:
Activity 1
Nightmare on Christmas EveHave you had misfortunes during a holiday or celebration? Let’s read what happened to Albert and his family last December on Christmas Eve.
Pixabay. (s.f.). Christmas dinner. Taken from: https://goo.gl/cPncDU
Check the timetable. Then read the text and drag the phrases in past perfect to complete it.
TIME |
ACTION |
12:00 pm |
Put the turkey in the oven |
2:00 pm |
Everyone helps to make the meal |
6:00 pm |
Make the apple salad |
6:30 pm |
Complete the cooking |
6:45 pm |
Finish to set the table |
6:50 pm |
Turn on the stove |
11:30 pm |
Wait for more than four hours |
11:25 pm |
Give up hope |
Activity 2
The Sleepy ThiefWhen you do something, do it in the right way. If you don’t do it, you can end up like this man.
Click on the Start button to answer the questions. Once you finish all the parts of the exam, click on Submit to complete.
Pixabay. (s.f.). Detener. Taken from: https://goo.gl/i6rOi0
Activity 3
The bad tenantImagine you had a discussion with your roommate, and he or she decided to move to another apartment, but you weren’t told about it. One morning you go out, and when you return, you couldn’t believe your eyes. Your roommate had gone!
Write a paragraph describing what your roommate had done to your apartment while you were out.
First, check these rubrics to know what your writing needs for a self-assessment. In this link, you can read an example.
Activity 4.
And the rest?Sometimes we can’t make it because in the process to reach the objectives something happens and it spoils our plans or our intentions.
Read the first part of each sentence. Then, complete the second part of the sentence using your own ideas in Past Perfect. Read in this link the checklist for a self-assessment. Click here to listen to the examples. Then compare them to your own work.
Remember to record your sentences and send them to your assessor.
The Past Perfect describes sentences that happened before other actions in the past. After reviewing this topic, do the following activity.
To build our speech, affirmative sentences are not the only ones that are required. Also, the negative and interrogative sentences are vital, that is why it is essential to practice them.
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