This tense is used to express:

A repeated action in the past:
She had been trying to reach there for two days.
An action that continued in the past up until a particular time:
He had been waiting for you since 3 o’clock.

Formulas & Examples

1. Affirmative (Positive)

Formula: Subject + had been + V1 + ing + Object + for/since + Time

Ashima had been weaving this scarf for two days.
Ranjana had been preparing for the speech since Monday.

2. Negative

Formula: Subject + had not been + V1 + ing + Object + for/since + Time

I had not been visiting her since last January.
They had not been registering the new companies since the last scam.

3. Interrogative Positive

Formula: W/H family + had + Subject + been + V1 + ing + Object + for/since + Time + ?

Why had you been working with a low-profile group for two years?
Had he been taking piano classes since March?

4. Interrogative Negative

Formula: W/H family + had + Subject + not been + V1 + ing + Object + for/since + Time + ?

Why had he not been paying his instalments since last August?
Had she not been selling household articles for three years?

Reading Comprehension Passage

Fighting For the Right!

Parneeta had been fighting for her rights since the last decade, but no one was supporting her cause. She had been a student of the law faculty in Delhi before marriage, and had been working with an N.G.O. for the last five years. If a strong personality like Parneeta had not been getting justice for more than ten years, then how can an average or below-average girl ever hope for anything favourable from our judiciary? Many such questions had been raised by our society since it was formed. Since no one had been raising such issues for a long time, the government was not aware of many such useless laws that had been forcing the people to use illegal means to keep their boats sailing. Some courageous people had been challenging such laws for years, but they too had their own limits.

Exercises

A. Answer the following questions in one line only:

How long had Parneeta been fighting for her rights?
What was her qualification?
Who had she been working for and how long?
Why had people been using illegal means for years to keep their boats sailing?
Had anyone been challenging such laws for years?

B. Edit the following sentences:

Seena had been visiting this temple for last summer. —> since
I had been distributing laddoos since many years. —> ____________________
So we had been see each other every Tuesday... —> ____________________
Since our first meeting in the Suryaansh Institute. —> ____________________
Before that, she had not been worship any deity... —> ____________________
Since her tragic failure.

C. Rearrange the following words to form meaningful sentences:

a. Sumit / had / been / looking / for / a / nice / job / since / this / January / .
b. We / had / been / sending / payment / reminders / to / him / for / the / last / three / months / .
c. Had / he / been / working / with / your / company / for / four / years / ?
d. Why / had / Namita / not / been / visiting / our / ice-cream / parlour / for / the / last / two / weeks / ?
e. Where / had / he / been / living / for / the / last / three / days / ?

Word Power!

Match the following words with their correct meanings:

Word	Meaning
a. Decade	A period of ten years.
b. Favourable	Sympathetic, advantageous, or giving approval.
c. Illegal	Not approved by the law; unlawful.
d. Justice	A fair judgment and treatment under the law.

Writing Skills!

Make meaningful sentences with the following words: N.G.O., Hope, Average, Challenge, Courage.
Expand the following passage:
Last week our school celebrated Clean and Green Day. All the students had been preparing for this day for many weeks. Teachers had been assisting their students for many days...

Grand Finale: Unit Review Story

Now that we have learned all branches of the Past Tense (Simple, Indefinite, Continuous, Perfect, and Perfect Continuous), let read a comprehensive story that brings them all together!

The Deliverance of Mathura

When Lord Krishna came to Mathura after taking leave from mother Yashoda and all the gopas, gopis, cows, trees, and his beloved Radha, he decided to wear royal clothes to meet his mother Devaki and father Vasudev, who had been living under the captivity of Kansa since they got married to each other. They saw the royal washerman at the bank of river Yamuna washing the royal clothes. Lord Krishna asked him to provide some royal pairs of clothes, which he denied. Lord Krishna’s elder brother Balram recognized the washerman. The washerman was none other than the one due to whom Lord Rama had to part with his beloved wife Sita in Treta Yug. To take revenge, Balram there and then killed the washerman with his heavy Musal (massive grinding rod). Afterwards, both the brothers decorated themselves with royal clothes to visit the royal palace of Mathura.

To see their saviour princes, all the natives of Mathura came out of their houses. When Kansa learned about their arrival, he made all the arrangements to kill them. The dangerous wrestlers, the drunken elephant, and the valiant warriors were all waiting eagerly to kill Balram and Lord Krishna. When both the brothers entered the royal palace, the giant elephant attacked them, but Balram ji killed it with just one mighty blow on its forehead. At the second entrance, the terrible wrestlers were waiting for them; both the brothers killed them in no time. Kansa’s loyal soldiers also got killed. After killing all the demons and evil soldiers of Kansa, Lord Krishna dragged down Kansa from his throne and killed him with his mighty blows. Everyone rejoiced at the killing of the tyrant Kansa.

Their father Vasudev and mother Devaki, who had already suffered a lot, forgot all the sufferings of imprisonment and the painful killing of all their newborn sons who had been killed by the hands of wicked Kansa. They were now smiling with tearful eyes; tears were rolling down their cheeks. They embraced their divine and mighty sons who not only freed them from captivity but also provided deliverance to the people of Mathura from the tyranny of Kansa.

Story-Based Exercises

1. Answer the following questions based on the story:

Lord Krishna’s love was not limited to human beings only. Gokul as a whole was so dear to Lord Krishna and Balram. Discuss?
What did Lord Krishna and Balramji decide to do first after reaching Mathura? Why did they decide so?
How did Balram react to the washerman’s disobedience? Was his reaction just?
What arrangements had Kansa made to kill Krishna and Balram?
What happened when both the brothers entered the royal palace?
What happened at the second entrance?
How did Krishna finally kill Kansa?
‘God sees but waits’—explain this proverb illustrating Devaki and Vasudev’s episode.
Suggest a suitable title for this story.

2. Edit the following sentences:

Last Sunday I call up all my... —> called
Acquaintances, I want to start our... —> ____________________
New society, some already had give the approval... —> ____________________
Beforehand and some was attending the seminar... —> ____________________
To know the details. Some did not even reply... —> ____________________
In affirmative or negative. They behave in a very coward manner. —> ____________________

3. Word Power!

Write down the antonyms of the following: Recognized, Denied, Saviour, Valiant, Warrior, Eagerly.
Write down the synonyms of the following: Giant, Tyrant, Throne, Mighty, Wicked, Deliverance.

4. Writing Skills!

Write the story of ‘The Rabbit and the Tortoise’ in your own words using the past tenses you have practiced in this unit.

Ready to check your work?
Please try all the exercises before looking at the answers! 😉

Click here to view the complete Answer Key

GRAMMAR WITH SURYAANSH

PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE