<p><strong>Past Perfect Continuous Tense</strong></p>
<p><strong>FORM</strong></p>
<p> [had been + vb+ing ]</p>
<p>Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li>You <strong>had been waiting</strong> there for more than two hours when she finally arrived.</li>
<li><strong>Had</strong> you <strong>been waiting</strong> there for more than two hours when she finally arrived?</li>
<li>You <strong>had not been waiting</strong> there for more than two hours when she finally arrived.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Positive</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>I had been living</li>
<li>You had been going</li>
<li>She had been sleeping</li>
<li>He had been working</li>
<li>It had been raining</li>
<li>We had been studying</li>
<li>They had been cooking</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Negative</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>I had not been trying (I hadn't been..)</li>
<li>You had not been working (you hadn't been..)</li>
<li>She had not been crying (she hadn't been..)</li>
<li>He had not been shopping (he hadn't been..)</li>
<li>It had not been snowing (it hadn't been..)</li>
<li>We had not been reading (we hadn't been..)</li>
<li>They had not been running (they hadn't been..)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>'Yes / no' questions</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Had I been working?</li>
<li>Had you been sleeping?</li>
<li>Had she been reading?</li>
<li>Had he been watching TV?</li>
<li>Had it been raining?</li>
<li>Had we been drinking?</li>
<li>Had they been eating?</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>'wh' questions</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Where had I been working?</li>
<li>How long had you been sleeping?</li>
<li>What had she been reading?</li>
<li>How long had he been watching TV?</li>
<li>How long had it been raining?</li>
<li>What had we been drinking?</li>
<li>Why had they been eating?</li>
</ul>
<p> <strong>USE 1 Duration Before Something in the Past</strong></p>
<p>We use the Past Perfect Continuous to show that something started in the past and continued up until another time in the past. "For five minutes" and "for two weeks" are both durations which can be used with the Past Perfect Continuous. Notice that this is related to the <a href="http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/presentperfectcontinuous.html">Present Perfect Continuous</a>; however, the duration does not continue until now, it stops before something else in the past.</p>
<p>Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li>They <strong>had been talking</strong> for over an hour before Tony arrived.</li>
<li>She <strong>had been working</strong> at that company for three years when it went out of business.</li>
<li>How long <strong>had</strong> you <strong>been waiting</strong> to get on the bus?</li>
<li>Mike wanted to sit down because he <strong>had been standing</strong> all day at work.</li>
<li>James <strong>had been teaching</strong> at the university for more than a year before he left for Asia.</li>
<li>A: How long <strong>had</strong> you <strong>been studying</strong> Turkish before you moved to Ankara?<br /> B: I <strong>had not been studying</strong> Turkish very long.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>USE 2 Cause of Something in the Past</strong></p>
<p>Using the Past Perfect Continuous before another action in the past is a good way to show cause and effect.</p>
<p>Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li>Jason was tired because he <strong>had been jogging</strong>.</li>
<li>Sam gained weight because he <strong>had been overeating</strong>.</li>
<li>Betty failed the final test because she <strong>had not been attending</strong> class.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Past Continuous vs. Past Perfect Continuous</strong></p>
<p>If you do not include a duration such as "for five minutes," "for two weeks" or "since Friday," many English speakers choose to use the Past Continuous rather than the Past Perfect Continuous. Be careful because this can change the meaning of the sentence. Past Continuous emphasizes interrupted actions, whereas Past Perfect Continuous emphasizes a duration of time before something in the past. Study the examples below to understand the difference.</p>
<p>Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li>He was tired because he <strong>was exercising</strong> so hard.<br /> <em>This sentence emphasizes that he was tired because he was exercising at that exact moment.</em></li>
<li>He was tired because he <strong>had been exercising</strong> so hard.<br /> <em>This sentence emphasizes that he was tired because he had been exercising over a period of time. It is possible that he was still exercising at that moment OR that he had just finished.<br /><br /></em></li>
</ul>
<p><strong>ADVERB PLACEMENT</strong></p>
<p>The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.</p>
<p>Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li>You had <strong>only</strong> been waiting there for a few minutes when she arrived.</li>
<li>Had you <strong>only</strong> been waiting there for a few minutes when she arrived?</li>
</ul>
<p>EXERCISES</p>
<p><span>Past Perfect Continuous - Positive and Negative</span></p>
<p><a href="http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-continuous-exercise-1.html" target="_blank">http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-continuous-exercise-1.html</a> </p>
<p><a href="http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-continuous-exercise-2.html" target="_blank">http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-continuous-exercise-2.html</a></p>
<p><span>Past Perfect Continuous Questions</span></p>
<p> <a href="http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-continuous-exercise-3.html" target="_blank">http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/past-perfect-continuous-exercise-3.html</a></p>
<p>Past Perfect or Past Perfect Continuous</p>
<p><a href="http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/support-files/past_perfect_or_past_perfect_continuous.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/support-files/past_perfect_or_past_perfect_continuous.pdf</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href="http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbs13.htm" target="_blank">http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbs13.htm</a><strong><br /></strong></p>
<p><strong> </strong></p>