How do you choose between the Present Perfect Continuous and Past Perfect Continuous?

 

The Present Perfect Continuous is used to talk about an action in progress that was taking place until the present moment.

 

I’m really tired. I have been carrying those bags for half an hour.

 

The Past Perfect Continuous is used to talk about an ongoing action that was taking place until another specified moment in the past.

 

I had been carrying those bags for half an hour when I met Peter and he helped me.

 

Consider the following examples:

 

Present Perfect Continuous	Past Perfect Continuous
I‘m really thirsty. I have been cycling for three hours.	I was really thirsty. I had been cycling for three hours.
They have been playing all day long and now they are tired.	They had been playing all day long before they got tired and went home.
Mary haven’t been doing well at school last month and the results of her tests are poor.	Mary hadn’t been doing well at school last month, so she failed her final tests.

 

To make questions in the Past Perfect Continuous, use:

 

Had + subject + been + the “-ing” form of the verb

 

Singular	Plural
Had I been skating? Had you been skating? Had he/she/it been skating?	Had we been skating? Had you been skating? Had they been skating?

 

 

Had it been snowing for a long time before you went for a walk?

 

Had you been playing with Timothy when mom called you for dinner?

 

Had she been studying Spanish for a long time by the time she went to Madrid?  

 

Note: in short positive answers to the Past Perfect Continuous questions we use only full forms of had. In short negative answers we can also use short forms of had.

 

 

Had you been playing football?

Yes, I had (No, I hadn’t).

 

Had she been watching TV at that moment?

Yes, she had (No, she hadn’t).

 

To make negative statements in the Past Perfect Continuous, use:

 

had not been + the “-ing” form of the verb

 

Singular	Plural
I had not been sleeping You hadn’t been sleeping He/she/it hadn’t been sleeping	We hadn’t been sleeping You hadn’t been sleeping They hadn’t been sleeping

 

 

Mary decided to buy a new juicer because her old one hadn’t been working for years.

 

He hadn’t been studying for 5 months before he was expelled from the university.

 

I hadn’t been training hard enough and lost the fight.

 

The Past Perfect Continuous is normally used with the Past Simple to talk about an activity that was in progress before another action or event happened.

 

In such statements the Past Simple describes a completed event in the past and the Past Perfect Continuous describes a repeated or continuing action that was taking place before that completed event.

 

He had been studying (Past Perfect Continuous) French for two years before he went (Past Simple) to Paris.

 

By the time Nick arrived (Past Simple) to the station, he had been walking for two hours.

 

To make the Past Perfect Continuous, use

 

had been + the “-ing” form of the verb

 

Singular	Plural
I had (’d) been fishing You’d been fishing He/she/it’d been fishing	We’d been fishing You’d been fishing They’d been fishing

 

 

Peter decided to buy a new car because his old one hadn’t been working for years.

 

I went to see the doctor after I‘d been feeling unwell for a few days.

 

How do you choose between the Present Perfect and Past Perfect?

 

The Present Perfect is used to talk about an action that took place in the recent past and is still relevant to the present moment.

 

The bus has left and we have to wait for another one.

 

The Past Perfect is used to talk about an action that took place before another moment in the past.

 

The bus had left before we arrived to the station.

 

Consider the following examples:

 

Present Perfect	Past Perfect
I am so excited. I have just passed my exam.	I was so excited. I had passed my exam.
We‘ve finished the game and now we have dinner.	We‘d finished the game when mom called us for dinner.
His team has won and he’s very happy.	His team had won, so he went to the bar to celebrate their victory.

 

To make questions in the Past Perfect, use:

 

Had + subject + past participle

 

Singular	Plural
Had I seen? Had you seen? Had he/she/it seen?	Had he seen? Had she seen? Had they seen?

 

 

Had you seen Helen playing squash with Nicole before the rain started?

 

Had he made any mistakes before the teacher asked him to hand in the test?

 

You looked pale. Had anybody scared you?

 

 

Note: in short positive answers to the Past Perfect questions we use only full forms of had.   In short negative answers we can also use short forms of had.

 

 

– Had you made your homework before the movie started?

– Yes, I had (No, I hadn’t).

 

– Had he finished cleaning when you came in?

– Yes, he had (No, he hadn’t).

 

To make negative statements in the Past Perfect, use:

 

had not + the past participle form of the verb:

 

Singular	Plural
I had not (hadn’t) left You hadn’t left He/she/it hadn’t left	We hadn’t left You hadn’t left They hadn’t left

 

Nick hadn’t attended our meeting, so we discussed everything without him.

 

I hadn’t read the play before I went to the theatre to see it.

 

They were so excited. They hadn’t danced together since 2014.     

 

The Past Perfect is normally used with the Past Simple to talk about two or more events that happened at different times in the past.

 

In such statements the Past Simple describes the event that is closest to the time of speaking. The Past Perfect describes an event further back in the past.

 

The train had left (Past Perfect) before we arrived (Past Simple) at the station. (The train left earlier and we arrived later).

 

Anthony had gone (Past Perfect) to the university when I knocked (Past Simple) on his door.

 

He had cooked (Past Perfect) dinner before Gwen got back (Past Simple) from work.

 

To make the Past Perfect, use:

 

had + past participle

 

Singular	Plural
I had planned You had planned He/she/it had planned	We’d planned You’d planned They’d planned

 

In the following examples, even if the Past Simple action is first in the sentence, it still happened later:

 

The traffic was bad because a car had broken on the road.

 

When we arrived at the stadium, the game had already started.

 

How do you choose between the Present Perfect Continuous and Present Perfect?

 

The Present Perfect Continuous is used to show that an activity in the past was in progress. It is possible that the activity is still taking place.

 

We’ve been looking at those beautiful paintings for two hours.

 

The Present Perfect is used to show that an activity in the past is finished.

 

We’ve selected our favorite painting among those exhibited.

 

Consider the following examples:

 

Present Perfect Continuous	Present Perfect
I‘ve been cooking dinner. It will be ready soon.	I‘ve cooked dinner. It is ready now.
Jane‘s been running today. Now she’s really tired.	Jane has just run a race. Now she’s receiving a medal.
We‘ve been eating too much lately. We must eat less.	We‘ve eaten all cake. The plates are empty.

 

To make questions in the Present Perfect Continuous, use:

 

Have/Has + subject + been + the “-ing” form of the verb

 

Singular	Plural
Have I been reading? Have you been reading? Has he/she/it been reading?	Have we been reading? Have you been reading? Have they been reading?

 

Have you been watching the movie?

Yes, come in, let’s watch it together.

 

Has she been studying French this year?

Yes, and she is taking her exam next Monday.

 

Have they been waiting for the bus for an hour?

Unfortunately… Looks like the bus broke down.