Grammar: Groups & phrases: Verb group: Time & tense

Past perfect

The form of the past perfect: Student problems

You can help your students by comparing the pronunciation of the contracted form with the full form:

	singular - full form		singular - contracted
first person	I	had played	I	'd played
second person	you	had played	you	'd played
third person	he she it	had played had played had played	he she it	'd played 'd played 'd played

	plural - full form		plural - contracted
first person	we	had played	we	'd played
second person	you	had played	you	'd played
third person	they	had played	they	'd played

In speech and informal writing, the past simple of the auxiliary verb have is typically abbreviated, although with some pronunciation differences depending on the preceding vowel or consonant:

third person

Kitty his sister one of my brothers

'd played 'd played 'd played

Kitty and Ricky he and his sister all of my friends

'd played 'd played 'd played