PAST PERFECT TENSE

PAST PERFECT TENSE

Past Perfect tense is a compound tense of the past, formed of two elements: Past tense of the auxiliary verb TO HAVE and Past Participle form of the verb which is conjugated.

I had written; you had worked; he had eaten; she had cut; it had cried

we had translated; you had put; they had understood

Being a compound tense, its interrogative form is built by placing the subject between the two verbs:

Had I written? Had you worked? Had he eaten? Had she cut? Had it cried?

Had we translated? Had you put? Had they understood?

and the negative form consists of introducing the negative word NO between the two verb components:

I had not written; you had not worked; he had not eaten; she had not cut; it had not cried

we had not translated; you had not put; they had not understood

The English Past Perfect tense has an equivalent in Romanian, in mai mult ca perfectul and expresses a past action or state ended before another past action; it may be translated into Romanian by mai mult ca perfectul, perfectul simplu, perfectul compus:

I knew Peter but I had not met him since my graduation.

When they had said good bye, they walked on .

Past Perfect tense is used in the following cases:

(A)  it indicates that an action begun before a certain past moment, rendered by Past tense Indicative, lasts a time period up to that moment, and it is translated by imperfect:

He said that he had worked there for two weeks.

(B)  it replaces Perfect Future tense in a subordinate clause and is translated by viitorul anterior:

The teacher promised he would bring the papers when he had corrected them.

(C)  it is used with the adverbs just, yet

I had just written the letter when she entered the room.

Nick told me that he had not cut the flowers yet.

In Indirect Speech, Past Perfect tense replaces Present Perfect tense and Past tense of the Direct Speech when the main clause verb is in the past:

Direct Speech

He said: I have written the homework.

She told me the truth

Indirect Speech:

He said that he had written the homework.

He said that she had told him the truth.

Past Perfect tense may be replaced by Past tense in subordinate clauses introduced by before or in subordinate clauses which show anteriority :

I carried the box with the shoes she had bought/ bought me.

The bus left/ had left   before we arrived in the station.