Vbj2

THE PAST PERFECT TENSE

SIMPLE / INDEFINITE

The Past Perfect Simple / Indefinite is a past tense which expresses a past action
happening at a moment or over a period of time before another past action (the point of reference
is the past). It expresses a relationship of anteriority.
Past NOW

Past Perfect
He didn’t buy bread. He paid for the eggs and milk. Then he remembered the bread.
After he had paid for the eggs and milk, he remembered he hadn’t bought bread.
The Past Perfect is usually translated into Romanian by MAI-MULT-CA-PERFECT, a
tense of the indicative with exactly the same morphological value:
He had already left when I got to his office.
(Plecase deja când am ajuns la el la birou.)
But in Romanian the values of the temporal relationship (anteriority, posteriority) are not
expressed by observing some definite rules of temporal sequence. As a result, we may use
PERFECT COMPUS in a sentence expressing temporal anteriority, the same as in the main clause.
Once I had met him, I understood we would be good friends.
(De îndatǎ ce l-am cunoscut, am înţeles cǎ vom fi buni prieteni.)
After they had looked it over carefully, they decided to buy the property.
(Dupǎ ce au examinat-o atent, au hotǎrât sǎ cumpere proprietatea.)
In Reported Speech, the Past Perfect is used to replace a Direct Speech Present Perfect or
Past Tense, after a reporting verb in the past.
He said, ‘I have seen a wonderful movie.’
He said he had seen a wonderful movie.
She asked, ‘Did you have a good time?’
She asked whether we had had a good time.
PAST PERFECT PATTERNS
Affirmative
The Past Perfect is formed with the auxiliary to have in the Past Tense and the verb in the
Past Participle.
SUBJECT + Aux. HAVE + VERB
(Past Tense) (Past Participle)
I had flown – I’d flown
you had flown – you’d flown
he had flown – he’d flown
we had flown – we’d flown
you had flown – you’d flown
they had flown – they’d flown
 Negative
The negative form inserts the negation not between the auxiliary to have and the verb.
SUBJECT + Aux. HAVE + NOT + VERB
(Past Tense) (Past Participle)
I had not caught – I’d not caught / I hadn’t caught
you had not caught – you’d not caught / you hadn’t caught
he had not caught – he’d not caught / he hadn’t caught
we had not caught – we’d not caught / we hadn’t caught
you had not caught – you’d not caught / you hadn’t caught
they had not caught – they’d not caught / they hadn’t caught
Interrogative
In the interrogative the structure involves inversion between the subject and the auxiliary
to have.
Aux. HAVE + SUBJECT + VERB ?
(Past Tense) (Past Participle)
had I stayed? had we stayed?
had you stayed? had you stayed?
had they stayed? had they stayed?
(There is no short form for the interrogative.)
Interrogative-negative
The interrogative-negative uses the inversion between the subject and the auxiliary to
have and also the negation not, inserted between the subject and the verb in the Past Participle.
The short form uses the conjunct form of the auxiliary and the negation.
Aux. HAVE + SUBJECT + NOT + VERB ?
(Past Tense) (Past Participle)

Aux. HAVE + NOT + SUBJECT + VERB ?

(Past Tense) (Past Participle)
had I not wept? – hadn’t I wept?
had you not wept? – hadn’t you wept?
had he not wept? – hadn’t he wept?
had we not wept? – hadn’t we wept?
had you not wept? – hadn’t you wept?
had they not wept? – hadn’t they wept?
Further examples:
When he came home, his wife had long ceased to wait for him and was fast asleep.
After Anne had written and mailed the letter, she started to feel sorry and tried to get it
back from the post-office.
I explained that the train had been late, that was why I had been unable to keep my
appointment.
By the end of the year they had moved into their new flat, which had been specially
decorated by a designer.
 It was twenty years since his sister hadn’t talked to him. They had quarrelled over an
inheritance.

TWO QUASI-SIMULTANEOUS ACTIONS

There is a special Past Perfect construction in English, which expresses the quasi-
simultaneity of two past actions: the second action happens within a time interval which is
considered by the speaker as very short of the first action, so short that the two actions are almost
simultaneous.
NOW

1 2
* In Romanian, this construction is called TEMPORALǍ INVERSǍ and the time
clause has no subordination markers.
(i) N-a intrat bine în casǎ, cǎ a sunat telefonul.
(ii) Nici n-a intrat bine în casǎ, şi a sunat telefonul.
(iii) N-a apucat sǎ intre bine în casǎ, cǎ a şi sunat telefonul.
(iv) Nici n-a apucat sǎ intre bine în casǎ, când a sunat telefonul.
There are no tense markers in these sentences, but there are tense markers in the
following sentence:
(v) Când nici nu intrase bine în casǎ, a sunat telefonul.
The markers of quasi-simultaneity are present in the subordinate clause
(TEMPORALA INVERSǍ) by the negative form of the verb, the adverb nici, the adverb
bine, the verb a apuca, and in the main clause by the adverbs cǎ, şi, când.
In English, this construction appears as:
He had no sooner entered the house than the phone rang.
He had hardly / barely / scarcely entered the house when the phone rang.
The markers of quasi-simultaneity are in the time clause no sooner or hardly / barely /
scarcely, and in the second clause than and when. But unlike Romanian, in English these
structures have a more rigid character, including the form of the verb, which in the time clause is
necessarily Past Perfect, and in the main clause Past Tense.
NO SOONER + Past Perfect............ THAN + Past Tense
HARDLY
BARELY + Past Perfect............ WHEN + Past Tense
SCARCELY
In the time clause the adverb is placed between the auxiliary and the verb.
In an emphatic structure, used in order to lay stress on the adverb, the latter goes into
initial position, with Subject – Auxiliary inversion.
NO SOONER + HAD + Subject 1 + Verb 1 [Past Participle] .....
..... THAN + Subject 2 + Verb 2 [Past Tense]
HARDLY
BARELY + HAD + Subject 1 + Verb 1 [Past Participle] .....
 SCARCELY ..... WHEN + Subject 2 + Verb 2 [Past Tense]

The previous examples become:

No sooner had he entered the house than the phone rang.
Hardly / Barely / Scarcely had he entered the house when the phone rang.
Further examples:
I had no sooner caught sight of her than she vanished into thin air.
No sooner had he started to explain than his wife interrupted him in mid-sentence.
Jack had hardly bought a new stereo system when his house was burgled and everything
of value in it stolen.
Scarcely had the curtain risen when a lamp crashed down onto the stage.
Quasi-simultaneity also applies to two present or future actions, provided that one tense is
anterior to the other. For the present we have Present Perfect and Present Tense Simple:
No sooner has she gone out than she catches a cold.
(Nici nu iese bine din casǎ, cǎ şi rǎceşte.)
For the future, since we cannot use Future Perfect in the time clause, we use Present
Perfect. So one action will be in the Present Perfect, the other in the Future Tense Simple:
Hardly has he got home when he will realize his mistake.
(Nu va fi ajuns bine acasǎ, cǎ-şi va da seama de greşealǎ.)

THE PAST PERFECT TENSE

CONTINUOUS / PROGRESSIVE
The Past Perfect Tense Continuous / Progressive is a past tense which expresses an
action beginning at a moment in the past and going on uninterruptedly up to another past moment
or an action happening at the same time as a Past Perfect action.
Past Perfect Past NOW

‿ ‿ ‿ ‿ ‿ ▶
⁀ ⁀ ⁀ ⁀ ⁀
Past Perfect Past NOW

‿ ‿ ‿ ‿ ‿ ▶
⁀ ⁀ ⁀ ⁀ ⁀
He entered the company in 1993. I started to work for them in 2003.
When I entered the company, he had been working for them for ten years.

Peter said that he had been minding his own business when they had rushed into
his office.
In Romanian the Past Perfect Continuous is the most frequently translated by
IMPERFECT, but the rendering by MAI-MULT-CA-PERFECT is also possible.
When I met her she had been shopping for hours.
(Când am întâlnit-o, fǎcea / fǎcuse cumpǎrǎturi de ore întregi.)
 It is frequently used with time expressions built with for and since, the same as the
Present Perfect Continuous, and sometimes with by-expressions, the same as the Future Perfect
or the Future Perfect Continuous.
By 10, she had been writing on her novel for almost twelve hours.
(Pânǎ la 10, scrisese/ scria de aproape douǎsprezece ore la romanul ei.)
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS PATTERNS
Affirmative
The Past Perfect Continuous is formed with two auxiliaries: to have in the Past Tense, as
an auxiliary of the tense, and to be in the Past Participle, as an auxiliary of the continuous aspect.
The verb proper is in the Present Participle (the ING-form).
SUBJECT + Aux. HAVE + Aux. BE + VERB
(Past Tense) (Past Participle) (Present Participle)
I had been betting – I’d been betting
you had been betting – you’d been betting
he had been betting – he’d been betting
we had been betting – we’d been betting
you had been betting – you’d been betting
they had been betting – they’d been betting
Negative
The negative inserts the negation not between the first auxiliary, to have, and the second,
to be.
SUBJECT + Aux. HAVE + NOT + Aux. BE + VERB
(Past Tense) (Past Participle) (Present Participle)
I had not been selling – I’d not been selling / I hadn’t been selling
you had not been selling – you’d not been selling / you hadn’t been selling
he had not been selling – he’d not been selling / he hadn’t been selling
we had not been selling – we’d not been selling / we hadn’t been selling
you had not been selling – you’d not been selling / you hadn’t been selling
they had not been selling – they’d not been selling / they hadn’t been selling
Interrogative
The interrogative form is achieved by the inversion between the subject and the first
auxiliary, to have.
Aux. HAVE + SUBJECT + Aux. BE + VERB ?
(Past Tense) (Past Participle) (Present Participle)
had I been studying? had we been studying?
had you been studying? had you been studying?
had he been studying? had they been studying?
(There are no short forms in the interrogative.)
Interrogative-negative
The long form of the interrogative-negative uses the insertion of the negation not between
the subject and the second auxiliary, to be, as well as inversion between the auxiliary to have and
the subject. The short form uses the conjunct form of the auxiliary to have and the negation.
 Aux. HAVE + SUBJECT + NOT + Aux. BE + VERB ?
(Past Tense) (Past Participle) (Present Participle)

Aux. HAVE + NOT + SUBJECT + Aux. BE + VERB ?

(Past Tense) (Past Participle) (Present Participle)
had I not been riding? – hadn’t I been riding?
had you not been riding? – hadn’t you been riding?
had he not been riding? – hadn’t he been riding?
had we not been riding? – hadn’t we been riding?
had you not been riding? – hadn’t you been riding?
had they not been riding? – hadn’t they been riding?
Further examples:
Had she been waiting long when you got there?
He had been seeing her for months before he realized he was in love with her and asked
her to marry him.
By 2002 they had been dealing with such problems for a long time.
Hadn’t he been driving for more than fourteen hours when he had the accident?