Past Perfect (Plusquamperfekt)
Learn how German describes an event completed before another past event. Practise forming the Plusquamperfekt with hatte or war, choosing the auxiliary, and using nachdem clauses.
Explanation
The Plusquamperfekt: an earlier past event
The German **Plusquamperfekt** shows that an event was completed **before another point in the past**.
> Als der Kurs begann, **hatte** Nora ihren Kaffee schon **getrunken**.
Nora had already drunk her coffee when the course began.
Formation
Use:
**hatte / war in the simple past + past participle**
| Person | haben | sein |
|---|---|---|
| ich | hatte | war |
| du | hattest | warst |
| er/sie/es | hatte | war |
| wir | hatten | waren |
| ihr | hattet | wart |
| sie/Sie | hatten | waren |
The participle goes at the end:
- Wir **hatten** die Tür **geschlossen**.
- Lea **war** früh **aufgestanden**.
Haben or sein?
Choose the same auxiliary as in the Perfekt:
- Most verbs use **haben**: *hatte gearbeitet, hatten gelesen*.
- Verbs of movement or change of state often use **sein**: *war gegangen, waren angekommen*.
- **sein, bleiben**, and **werden** also use **sein**.
Ordering past events
The Plusquamperfekt marks the earlier event. The later event is usually in the Präteritum or Perfekt.
> Der Laden **hatte schon geschlossen**, als wir ankamen.
Words such as **schon, vorher, zuvor**, and **noch nie** can make the sequence clearer, but the time relationship is what matters.
Clauses with nachdem
**Nachdem** often introduces the earlier event. In the subordinate clause, the conjugated auxiliary is final:
> **Nachdem wir gegessen hatten**, gingen wir spazieren.
If the nachdem-clause comes first, the conjugated verb follows the comma directly in the main clause:
> Nachdem Mia angekommen war, **rief** sie ihren Bruder an.
Remember: **first the Plusquamperfekt event, then another past tense**.
Exercises
- Complete the missing past-perfect forms. Pay attention to the person and to haben or sein. (3)
- Join the two past events with nachdem. Put the earlier event in the Plusquamperfekt. (10)
- Insert the correct form from the word bank. A form may be used more than once. (3)
B1 · German · Grammar