The Past Perfect
Le past perfect, aussi appelé pluperfect, est un temps du passé, qui est lui-même antérieur à un autre passé. Il correspond, en général, au plus-que-parfait français.
Formation
Il est formé de l’auxiliaire have au passé, accompagné du participe passé du verbe: had + participe passé du verbe.
Emploi
She passed all her exams with honours because she had worked so hard.
Ordre chronologique: She worked hard → She passed all her exams → Now
Autres emplois
Avec depuis on aura aussi recours au past perfect pour traduire l’imparfait française.
They had been working for three hours.
(Ils travaillaient depuis trois heures. (verbe d’activité work au past perfect en be + ing))
Ordre chronologique: 1pm, they started working → 4pm, they are still working → Now
Try it out
Mettez les verbes au prétérit ou au past perfect:
- The Smiths … (go) to Ireland last summer. They … (visit) the United States three years prior.
- I … (try) to open the door with my key, but someone … (already, unlock) it.
- Samantha … (panic) when she got on the bus; she … (forget) her bag in the classroom.
- The witch … (kill) twenty children before the townspeople … (stop) her.
- Crumbs … (fall) out of his pocket; he … (steal) a biscuit before going out.
- I … (be) worried because I … (not see) him for thee days.
- The changeling … (live) in darkness before he … (kidnap) the boy.
- I … (be) hungry as I … (not eat) for two days.
Vocabulary
Make sure you know these words
Copy these words and find their French equivalent.
- kidnap (v.)
- witch (n.)
- magic wand (n.)
- evil spell (n.)
- miller (n.)
- woods (n.)
- charm (n./v.)
- oak tree (n.)
- unmarked graves (n.)
- vengeful (adj.)
- herbal remedy (n.)
- burn at the stake (v.)
- curse (v. / n.)
- spirit (n.)
- summon (v.)
- soul (n.)
- torment (n.)
- trapped (adj.)
Write the story of Bloody Mary (based on the text « Bloody Mary is Real ») using all the words above.
Evaluation
Answer questions about this lesson.