Exercises · Past perfect or past perfect continuous

Past perfect or past perfect continuous quiz

Choose the right tense for each sentence. Every example comes from real meetings, emails, updates and presentations – and each answer explains the rule.

Need a refresher? Review the rules in 4.2 Past simple or past perfect in our Verb Tenses in Business guide.

Quick rules

past perfect (had done)

A finished action or result before a moment in the past – often with how many or how much.

By the time the deal closed, we had held twelve meetings.

past perfect continuous (had been doing)

An activity that continued up to a moment in the past – often with how long.

We had been negotiating for six months before they signed.

explaining a past situation

The continuous form explains what caused a situation we could see.

The client was annoyed because he had been waiting for 40 minutes.

state verbs

Know, be, have (own), hate, believe… use the past perfect, not the continuous.

We had known each other since business school.

Result or activity?
Verbs we don’t use in continuous forms
Explaining a past situation
Mixed review

1. Result or activity?

How many and how much – or how long?

Rules: 4.2 Past simple or past perfect

1By the time the deal closed, we twelve meetings with the client.

had heldhad been holding

2We for six months before they finally signed the contract.

had negotiatedhad been negotiating

3When we the site visit, we took the client to lunch.

had finishedhad been finishing

4We for nearly three hours before we found the problem in the code.

had searchedhad been searching

5By 2020, the company offices in eight countries.

had openedhad been opening

2. Verbs we don’t use in continuous forms

Know, be, have, hate, see…

Rules: 4.2 Past simple or past perfect

1Before I joined the bank, I a trading floor.

had never seenhad never been seeing

2I the idea of networking events, but the conference last week was actually fun.

had always hatedhad always been hating

3We each other for years before we started the company together.

had knownhad been knowing

4The auditors discovered that the supplier involved in two fraud cases before.

had beenhad been being

5She the company car for only a month when it was stolen.

had hadhad been having

3. Explaining a past situation

Why was it like that? A long activity – or a finished action?

Rules: 4.2 Past simple or past perfect

1Her eyes were red because she at a screen all day.

had staredhad been staring

2The team looked exhausted – they all night to meet the deadline.

had workedhad been working

3The service was so slow that I my meal before my colleagues’ food arrived.

had already eatenhad already been eating

4The client was annoyed because he for 40 minutes in reception.

had waitedhad been waiting

5I the report three times, so I knew it was correct.

had checkedhad been checking

4. Mixed review

Both forms together, in real business situations.

Rules: 4.2 Past simple or past perfect

1We for five hours before we finally reached the factory.

had drivenhad been driving

2We the presentation three times before, but we watched it again because the new CFO it.

had seen … had never seenhad been seeing … had never been seeinghad seen … had never been seeing

3I about changing jobs for a while, so the offer came at the perfect time.

had thoughthad been thinking

4By the end of the meeting, we every item on the agenda.

had coveredhad been covering

5The share price for weeks before the company issued a profit warning.

had fallenhad been falling

Check a section to see your score here.

More practice

Next exerciseGap-fillType the right form Next exerciseMatch the sentence halvesMatch the beginnings and endings The guideVerb Tenses in BusinessDiagrams and explanations

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