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Understanding the Past Perfect Continuous Tense
The Past Perfect Continuous Tense is a way to talk about things that were happening in the past and continued for a while before another event in the past.
Important Points
Used to show the duration of an action before another action in the past.
Formed using 'had been' + verb with '-ing'.
Helps to emphasize the length of time an action was happening.
How to Form the Past Perfect Continuous Tense
To make a sentence in the Past Perfect Continuous Tense, you need to use 'had been' and then add the main verb with '-ing' at the end.
Examples
She had been playing for two hours before dinner.
They had been studying all night before the test.
I had been waiting for the bus for 30 minutes before it arrived.
When to Use the Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Important Points
To show how long something happened before another event.
When you want to emphasize the duration of an activity in the past.
To explain the cause of something in the past.
The Past Perfect Continuous Tense is like a time machine. It lets you tell stories about things that happened a long time ago and lasted for a while before something else happened.
Examples
By the time we arrived, they had been waiting for an hour.
She had been working at the company for five years before she got promoted.
The kids had been playing outside all afternoon before it started to rain.
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