Most people decide to learn the Past Perfect Tense (AKA Pluperfect Tense) once they have learnt the Present Perfect Tense (I have washed etc.) and after they have gotten to grips with Imperfect Tense (I used to wash/I was washing etc). If you haven’t studied these yet, it’s worth taking a look at them first and then come back here to study the Past Perfect Tense.
But why? I hear you ask… This is because you’ll need to bring those two tenses together to form the Past perfect Tense.
If you are ready, let’s get started on the Past Perfect Tense…
When do we use the Past Perfect (AKA Pluperfect) Tense?
You may think that saying ‘I have eaten/ I have watched’ etc is the Past Perfect Tense. However, if you remember, this is the PRESENT PERFECT because we use the Present formation of the verb HABER.
For the PAST PERFECT we use an actual PAST formation of HABER (the imperfect) to talk about what we HAD done. The Past perfect is set further back in the past than the Present Perfect.
Here is a quick comparison:
- Present perfect: I have tried to call him.
- Past perfect: I had tried to call him.
So now you know that we use the Past Prefect Tense (also named ‘Pluperfect Tense’) to talk about what we HAD done, let’s look at its formation.
To form the Past Perfect Tense (AKA the Pluperfect):
| HABER in the Imperfect formation | Past Participle |
| (yo) Había (tú) Habías (él/ella) Había (nosotros/as) Habíamos (vosotros/as) Habíais (ellos/as) Habíán | probado / temido / existido |
I.e.
- (Yo) había probado un vestido. (I had tried on a dress.)
- (Ella) haría temido una guerra. (She had feared a war.)
- Las ruinas habían existido hasta 1950. (The ruins had existed until 1950.)
That’s all there is to it!
Honestly, that’s it for the Past Perfect Tense where regular past participles are concerned.
Why not try out these Past Perfect Tense activities with regular verbs before we take a look at the irregular past participles.
The Conditional Tense with irregular past participles:
There’s no need to shy away from taking on the Past Perfect Tense with irregular past participles because assuming you’ve studied any of the other Perfect Tenses (Present Perfect, Future Perfect or Conditional Perfect) you’ll find that the irregular past participles are all the same.
Here are the irregular past participles with the Past Perfect Tense:
| English Infinitive | Spanish Infinitive | Spanish Past Participle | Example |
| To break | romper | roto | Yo había roto el cristal.- I had broken the glass. |
| To say | decir | dicho | ¿Habías dicho la verdad?- Had you told the truth? |
| To see | ver | visto | Él había visto la luna llena.- He had seen the full moon. |
| To open | abrir | abierto | Habíamos abierto la tienda.- We had opened the shop. |
| To do/make | hacer | hecho | ¿Habíais hecho los deberes?- Had you all done the homework? |
| To die | morir | muerto | Habían muerto las flores.- The flowers had died. |
| To write | escribir | escrito | Yo había escrito una carta.- I had written a letter. |
| To put | poner | puesto | ¿Habías puesto los platos en la fregadera?- Had you put the plates in the sink? |
| To cover | cubrir | cubierto | Ella había cubierto la mesa.- She had covered the table. |
| To return | volver | vuelto | Habíamos vuelto de nuevo,- We had returned again. |
| To fry | freír | frito | ¿Habíais frito las patatas?- Had you all fried the potatoes? |
| To satisfy | satisfacer | satisfecho | Habían satisfecho los requisitos.- They had satisfied the requirements. |
Now that you’ve seen some examples, why not practise the Past Perfect Tense with irregular past participles here. No doubt you’ll find it easy peasy after a little practice.
And that’s a wrap!
So, by applying your knowledge of the Imperfect Tense (I used to draw/I was drawing etc) and the Present Perfect (I have drawn etc) you have put them together and managed to take on the Past Perfect Tense (I had drawn etc) in no time at all.
Keep practising to really build your confidence. Then, if you are up for more, why not take a look at one of the other Perfect tenses? There are 4 in total so if you are feeling confident with the Present Perfect Tense and now the Past Perfect tense, try out one of the others below:
- I will have finished. (Future Perfect)- Find out more here.
- I would have finished. (Conditional Perfect)- Find out more here.
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