When to use the past perfect continuous tense?
The past perfect continuous tense describes actions that started in the past and continued to a particular point in the past.
Example:
I had been studying for 3 hours when lunch was ready.
   past perfect continuous
Explanation: the studying part started and continued happening till lunchtime.
So, to form past perfect continuous tense sentences, follow this structure 👇
Subject + had + been + present participle (verb+ing)
*Use (had) with all the subjects (I, he, she, it, we, they, you).
How to form questions using the past perfect continuous?
Use the following past perfect continuous tense formula to form questions 👇
To answer with (yes/ no):Â
Had + subject + been + present participle (verb+ing)?
Examples:
Had he been studying for a long time before he took a break?
Had she been feeling sick all day before she decided to see a doctor?
To answer in depth details, use (wh-questions):
Wh-question + had + subject + been + present participle (verb+ing)?
Examples:
Where had he been studying?
How long had she been feeling sick?
How to form negative sentences using the past perfect continuous?
You need to add (not) after (had). Let’s have a look at the structure to learn more about the use of the negative form of the past perfect continuous tense:
Subject + had not (hadn’t) + been + present participle (verb+ing)
Examples:
He had not been studying for long when he decided to take a break.
He had not been working at the company for long before he got promoted.
*You can use the complete form (have not/ has not) or the contraction form (haven’t/ hasn’t), it depends on the person you speak with. Professionally and in formal settings, use the complete form. When speaking informally with family, friends, chatting, etc use the contraction form.
Is it possible to use the past perfect continuous with past perfect?
Of course! You can combine both of these tenses in one sentence and I explained this point a lot here. Let’s have a look at the following example to learn more about such a combination:
Examples:
I had been waiting for the bus when I found out it was canceled.
They had been working on the project for weeks before they submitted the final report.
Explanations:
You need to use both tenses, the past perfect continuous tense and past tense to describe a relationship between an ongoing and a completed action in the past. So,
1)The ongoing action in the two examples are (had been waiting & had been working). The completed actions (canceled & submitted).
I hope you find this English grammar lesson useful, let me know if you have any questions related to the use of the past perfect continuous or if you have any suggestions for the upcoming topics. Yesterday, I explained another English grammar topic here so feel free to check it 🙂 Also, if you need a private discussion or lessons, email me 🙂
Have a great day & take care!