I didn't ask you what someone else thinks the past perfect is. I asked you what YOU think the past perfect is.
Imagine you're teaching your 5th grade class. It is five minutes before the end of class. A student asks, What is the past perfect? What do you write on
the board that they can scribble into their notebooks before the bell rings?
Remember the man who wrote that he has heard more about the past perfect than a man should have to hear? I asked the same question of him. He did not reply. He won't reply because he doesn't know what it is either. Still.
(If you say it is used to show that one thing happened before another, I will reply that "I went to the store and bought peaches", or perhaps "Eduard finished the
definition before the bell rang".)
From: Eduard Hanganu <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2011 9:12 PM
Subject: Re: Past Perfect Definition and Usage
Brad,
Here is something that is worth looking at:
I hope this helps you to understand the past perfect and its usage in a sentence.
Eduard