Past Simple or Past Perfect?

Both the past simple and the past perfect are used to describe events that happened in the past. However, they are not used in the same way!

Understanding when to use each one will help you tell stories or explain past events more clearly.

Past Simple

The past simple is used to talk about completed actions in the past. These actions are usually given with a specific time or a clear sequence.

Examples:

I watched a film last night.

She left the house at 8am.

We met at the café yesterday.

This tense is straightforward; it simply tells us that something happened.

Past Perfect

The past perfect is used when you’re describing two past events, and you want to make it clear which one happened first.

It’s formed using had + past participle.

Example:

I had already eaten dinner when he called.

Here, two actions happened:

I ate dinner.

He called.

The past perfect (had eaten) shows that this action was completed before the phone call, which is in the past simple (called).

The past perfect is often used with the words:

already: He had already left when I arrived.

just: They had just finished the game.

yet: I hadn’t seen the film yet.

even: She had even forgotten his name.

These words help show that something was completed before another moment in the past.