Past Perfect with 'ter'

01

Formation

The structure is: Imperfect of ter + Past Participle.

First, conjugate the verb ter in the imperfect tense (pretérito imperfeito):

• eu tinha
• você/ele/ela tinha
• nós tínhamos
• vocês/eles/elas tinham

Next, add the past participle of the main verb. For regular verbs, this is formed by dropping the infinitive ending (-ar, -er, -ir) and adding -ado or -ido.

• Verbs ending in -ar → -ado (e.g., falar → falado)
• Verbs ending in -er and -ir → -ido (e.g., comer → comido; partir → partido)

Many common verbs have irregular past participles, such as:

• fazer → feito
• ver → visto
• escrever → escrito
• abrir → aberto

• Eu já tinha falado com ela.

  I had already spoken with her.

• Nós tínhamos feito a reserva.

  We had made the reservation.

02

Usage: The Past of the Past

The primary function of the past perfect is to establish a sequence of past events. It clarifies that one action was completed before another past action occurred. Think of it as "the past of the past."

Consider this timeline:

1. First past action (Past Perfect)

2. Second past action (Simple Past)

3. Present

• Quando eu cheguei na festa, a Ana já tinha saído.

  When I arrived at the party, Ana had already left.

(First action: Ana left. Second action: I arrived.)

• Ele não foi ao cinema conosco porque já tinha visto o filme.

  He didn't go to the movies with us because he had already seen the film.

(First action: He saw the film. Second action: He didn't go with us.)

• Eles ficaram surpresos porque nunca tinham comido comida tailandesa.

  They were surprised because they had never eaten Thai food.

(First action: Never eating Thai food. Second action: They were surprised.)

03

Compound vs. Simple Form

In Brazilian Portuguese, the compound form with ter (e.g., tinha falado) is used in everyday speech and writing.

There is also a simple form of this tense (e.g., falara) which has the same meaning. However, this simple form is now almost exclusively found in literature and very formal written texts. For communication, you should use the compound form.

• Ela já tinha saído quando o telefone tocou.

  She had already left when the phone rang. (Standard)

• Ela já saíra quando o telefone tocou.

  She had already left when the phone rang. (Literary/Formal)

04

Using 'Haver'

The verb haver can also be used as the auxiliary instead of ter (e.g., havia falado). This construction is more formal and less common in spoken Brazilian Portuguese, but it is useful to recognize it.

• O presidente já havia feito o discurso quando os jornalistas chegaram.

  The president had already given the speech when the journalists arrived.