FORM

person + had + been + gerund (verb with -ing ending)) + the rest of the sentence

• She had been learning for this exam for 3 months, but she passed it perfectly.

• They had been watching TV for two hours before Hellen arrived.

USE

1. Duration Before Something in the Past

We use the Past Perfect Continuous to show that something started in the past and continued up until another time in the past. "For five minutes" and "for two weeks" are both durations which can be used with the Past Perfect Continuous. Notice that this is related to the Present Perfect Continuous; however, the duration does not continue until now, it stops before something else in the past.

• She had been walking for an hour before she took a taxi.

• It hadn't been snowing for a month so there was no snow on the streets..

2. Cause of Something in the Past

• I was very tired because I had been working hard.

• The streets were full of water because it had been raining heavily.

3. Active/Passive

• I had been sewed a scarf for 5 years before I decided it is ready. ACTIVE

• A scarf had been being sewed by me for 5 years before I decided it is ready. PASSIVE

More exercises on the Past Perfect Continuous can be found in our forum and on the www.aling.pl!