Look at these examples to see how the past perfect is used.
He couldn't make a sandwich because he'd forgotten to buy bread.
The hotel was full, so I was glad that we'd booked in advance.
My new job wasn't exactly what I’d expected.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
Time up to a point in the past
We use the past perfect simple (had + past participle) to talk about time up to a certain point in the past.
She'd published her first poem by the time she was eight.
We'd finished all the water before we were halfway up the mountain.
Had the parcel arrived when you called yesterday?
Past perfect for the earlier of two past actions
We can use the past perfect to show the order of two past events. The past perfect shows the earlier action and the past simple shows the later action.
When the police arrived, the thief had escaped.
It doesn't matter in which order we say the two events. The following sentence has the same meaning.
The thief had escaped when the police arrived.
Note that if there's only a single event, we don't use the past perfect, even if it happened a long time ago.
The Romans spoke Latin. (NOT
The Romans had spoken Latin.)
Past perfect after before
We can also use before + past perfect to show that an action was not done or was incomplete when the past simple action happened.
They left before I'd spoken to them.
Sadly, the author died before he'd finished the series.
Adverbs
We often use the adverbs already (= 'before the specified time'), still (= as previously), just (= 'a very short time before the specified time'), ever (= 'at any time before the specified time') or never (= 'at no time before the specified time') with the past perfect.
I called his office but he'd already left.
It still hadn't rained at the beginning of May.
I went to visit her when she'd just moved to Berlin.
It was the most beautiful photo I'd ever seen.
Had you ever visited London when you moved there?
I'd never met anyone from California before I met Jim.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Hi elaliyev,
The sentence is correct – well done.
However, please note that the past perfect is not used because the actions are in sequence. To describe a sequence of actions we use the past simple:
I read the documents again before I made the phone call.
We use the past perfect because there is some relationship between the earlier action and the later one. It may be that the earlier action causes or allows the later one, or influences it in some way. In your example, the email is sent as a result of the reinbursement, and so the past perfect is appropriate as it signals this relationship.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello shubhamgupta,
You're right in thinking that there are separate events that occur in a sequence, but this doesn't mean that they both have to be mentioned in the same sentence. I expect that somewhere in the sentences before sentence 1, another event, subsequent to the invitation, is mentioned.
You can see some additional example sentences on this page.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello bak.sh85,
There are tendencies which work like this but please remember that they are not fixed rules. It is perfectly fine to use before + past simple + past perfect, for example, but it is also fine to use before + past simple + past simple. Pattterns like this can be misleading if you follow them as if they were rules. The context is key.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi bakh.sh85,
Like Peter, I'm a little hesitant to speak about 'rules', but I can say that your sentences are both correct and natural-sounding. I'd encourage you to focus on the meaning that the verb forms communicate to help remember them.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team