PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

The past perfect continuous (also called past perfect progressive) is a

verb tense which is used to show that an action started in the past and
continued up to another point in the past.

PAST PERFECT (had)

(+) S + auxiliary + been + Ving + O
You had been waiting there for more than two hours when she finally
arrived.

(-) S + auxiliary + not + been + Ving + O

You had not been waiting there for more than two hours when she
finally arrived.

(?) Auxiliary + S + been + Ving + O?

Had you been waiting there for more than two hours when she finally
arrived?

If WH_ _ _ in a question, it precedes the aux. I.e. How much does it cost?

USE 1 Duration Before Something in the Past

We use the past perfect continuous to show that something started in the past and
continued up until another time in the past. "For five minutes" and "for two weeks" are both
durations which can be used with the past perfect continuous. Notice that this is related to
the present perfect continuous; however, the duration does not continue until now, it stops
before something else in the past.

Examples:

● They had been talking for over an hour before Tony arrived.
● She had been working at that company for three years when it went out of business.
● How long had you been waiting to get on the bus?
● Mike wanted to sit down because he had been standing all day at work.
● James had been teaching at the university for more than a year before he left for
Asia.
● A: How long had you been studying Turkish before you moved to Ankara?

B: I had not been studying Turkish very long.

USE 2 Cause of Something in the Past

Using the past perfect continuous before another action in the past is a good way to show
cause and effect.

Examples:
● Jason was tired because he had been jogging.
● Sam gained weight because he had been overeating.
● Betty failed the final test because she had not been attending class.

Past Continuous vs. Past Perfect Continuous

If you do not include a duration such as "for five minutes," "for two weeks" or "since Friday,"
many English speakers choose to use the past continuous rather than the past perfect
continuous. Be careful because this can change the meaning of the sentence. Past
continuous emphasizes interrupted actions, where as past perfect continuous emphasizes a
duration of time before something in the past. Study the examples below to understand the
difference.

Examples:
● He was tired because he was exercising so hard.
This sentence emphasizes that he was tired because he was exercising at that
exact moment.
● He was tired because he had been exercising so hard.
This sentence emphasizes that he was tired because he had been exercising over a
period of time. It is possible that he was still exercising at that moment OR that he
had just finished.

Exercise:

Past Perfect and Past Perfect Continuous

I'm sorry I left without you last night, but I told you to meet me early because the show
started at 8:00. I HAD tried _______________(try) to get tickets for that play for months, and I
didn't want to miss it. By the time I finally left the coffee shop where we were supposed to
meet, I had had___________________ (have) five cups of coffee and I had been
waitting__________________(wait) over an hour. I had to leave because I had arranged
___________ (arrange) to meet Kathy in front of the theater.

When I arrived at the theater, Kathy had already picked ________________ (pick, already) up
the tickets and she was waiting for us near the entrance. She was really angry because she
had been waitting______________ (wait) for more than half an hour. She said had almost given
____________ (give, almost) up and had gone ________________(go) into the theater without us.

Kathy told me you had been_______________ (be) late several times in the past and that she
would not make plans with you again in the future. She mentioned that she had
missing_____________ (miss) several movies because of your late arrivals. I think you owe her
an apology. And in the future, I suggest you be on time.

Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous, and Past Perfect Continuous

1. It is already 9:30 PM and I ___________(wait) here for over an hours. If John does not get
here in the next five minutes, I am going to leave.

2. I was really angry at John yesterday. By the time he finally arrived, I ____________ (wait)
for over an hour. I almost left without him.
3. Did you hear that Ben was fired last month? He ___________________ (work) for that import
company for more than ten years and he _____________ (work) in almost every department.
Nobody knew the company like he did.

4. I _______________ (see) many pictures of the pyramids before I went to Egypt. Pictures of
the monuments are very misleading. The pyramids are actually quite small.

5. Sarah _____________ (climb) the Matterhorn, ____________(sail) around the world, and
_________(go) on safari in Kenya. She is such an adventurous person.

6. Sarah _________________ (climb) the Matterhorn, _____________(sail) around the world and
___________(go) on safari in Kenya by the time she turned twenty-five. She
____________________(experience) more by that age than most people do in their entire lives.

7. When Melanie came into the office yesterday, her eyes were red and watery. I think she
___________________ (cry).

Present Continuous, Simple Past, Present Perfect Continuous, and Past Perfect Continuous

My English is really getting better. I _____________ (try) to learn the language since 2010, but
only recently have I been able to make some real progress. By the time I started high school
in 2013, I________________ (study) the language for almost three years; however, I was only
able to introduce myself and utter a few memorized sentences. For a couple more years,
I_______________ (struggle) through grammar and vocabulary lessons, which made absolutely
no difference. Nothing worked, so I decided to study abroad.

I found an exchange program in England that sounded like the perfect answer. I
_____________(stay) with a host family for one month. It was a huge disappointment! I
_________________ (sit) there the whole time staring at the host mother and father hoping
that there would be some breakthrough. Nothing.

When I returned, I mentioned to a friend that I ___________ (have) problems with the
language for years. He recommended that I spend a year in an English speaking country. I
decided to go abroad again. I _______________ (research) exchange programs for a couple of
weeks and finally decided on a school in the United States.

Well, it worked. I ____________ (live) and______________ (study) in the U.S. for more than two
years. I ___________________(stay) here for at least another year before I return home. By
then, I should be completely fluent.