B1-2 · Looking back with the Plusquamperfekt
Turning points
Describe what had already happened before a decision changed your plans.
About 5 minutes to read · 12 quiz questions
01
Before the decision
Lea tells a friend why she changed jobs. Her decision belongs to the past. The Plusquamperfekt takes us one step further back, to the preparation before that decision. Form it with hatte or war and a past participle.
Ich hatte lange über den Wechsel nachgedacht.
I had thought about the change for a long time.
Ich hatte einen Kurs besucht.
I had attended a course.
Meine Freundin hatte mir eine Stelle empfohlen.
My friend had recommended a job to me.
Dann nahm ich die neue Stelle an.
Then I accepted the new job.
Use the same helper as in the Perfekt, but put it in the Präteritum: habe gelernt becomes hatte gelernt. The earlier action uses the Plusquamperfekt; the later event can use the Präteritum or Perfekt.
02
A move that happened earlier
Lea's brother Tom had already moved away when she made her decision. Movement verbs such as ziehen, fahren and kommen use war or waren here. The person changes the helper, not the participle.
Tom war schon nach Hamburg gezogen.
Tom had already moved to Hamburg.
Wir waren vorher nach Hamburg gefahren.
We had travelled to Hamburg beforehand.
Tom war zuerst bei Freunden geblieben.
Tom had stayed with friends at first.
Er war erst später in seine Wohnung umgezogen.
He had only moved into his flat later.
Compare ich war umgezogen and wir waren umgezogen. The separable verb umziehen forms umgezogen. With bleiben, also use sein: war geblieben.
03
Explain a turning point
A past result often makes sense once you hear its background. Read each pair as later event followed by earlier cause. Schon means already; vorher means beforehand. Neither word changes the tense by itself.
Ich war erleichtert. Ich hatte endlich eine Entscheidung getroffen.
I was relieved. I had finally made a decision.
Der Umzug war leicht. Wir hatten alles gut geplant.
The move was easy. We had planned everything well.
Tom kannte den Weg. Er war schon einmal dort gewesen.
Tom knew the way. He had been there once before.
Ich begann die neue Arbeit. Vorher hatte ich meinen alten Vertrag beendet.
I started the new job. Beforehand, I had ended my old contract.
Do not put every event into the Plusquamperfekt. Establish a past moment, then use it for the earlier background. In Ich war erleichtert, war is simply the past of sein; there is no participle.
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