Compare the use of the Past Perfect Simple, the Past Perfect Continuous and the Past Simple tense-forms

1. She ran downstairs to open the door, but it was too late. The postman had already gone.

2. She apologized and said she had already had lunch.

3. Hejtad been smoking for 20 years before he finally gave it up last year.

4. All the roads were blocked: it had been snowing all night long.

5. I had hardly got off the tram when it suddenly started moving.

6. I felt awful after dinner. I had eaten too much.

7. It turned out that Patric had broken his leg the previous morning.

8. I was pleased to see my old college friends at the conference last week as we hadn 't seen each other since we finished our course.

9. Maggie took a hot bath after she had been working in the garden all afternoon.

10. I had a pleasant surprise when I got to my room: someone had put some flowers there for me.

PRACTICE

1. Choose the appropriate tense-forms: Past Perfect Simple/Past Perfect Continuous and Past Simple/Past Continuous.

1. He turned off the electric light. It had been burning/had burnt all night.

2. Nobody bothered to inform me that the school decided/ had decided to have a special holiday that Friday.

3. Paul offered/had offered me another drink but I decided I drank/had drunk enough.

4. I knew I did/had done well in my exams even before I received the official results.

5. I saw/had seen right away it was the place I looked/ had looked/had been looking for all my life.

6. As soon as he raised his eyes I knew/had known that we met/had met before.

7. Excuse me, I had ordered/ordered a coffee half an hour ago. Is it ready yet?

8. She finished/hadfinished most of the work by the time her boss arrived.

2. Choose the appropriate adverbial of time.

1. She was working in the garden at/by that time.

2. Scarcely had the bell gone when/than the students filled the corridor.

3. The other day/One of these days he called on me to return the book he had borrowed.

4. The sun had no sooner hidden behind the clouds than/ when we heard the first claps of thunder.

5. The letter hadn't arrived by/until the end of the week yet.

6. I had tidied up the flat at/by that time.

7. It wasn't up to/until 1995 that Robert could afford to go on holiday abroad.

8. They had discharged Nick from hospital before/till we came.

9. His father had been running a bookshop during/for two years.

10. They reached the top of the mountain by/in four hours.

11. I had finished my homework at/by supper time.

12. They lived in Newcastle by/in 1983.