1: Something that started in the past
and continued up to another action or time in the past. The past perfect
continuous tells us 'how long', just like the present perfect continuous, but
this time the action continues up to a point in the past rather than the
present. Usually we use 'for + time'. (We can also use the past perfect
simple here, often
with stative verbs.)
-She had been working at that company for a year when she met
James.
-I'd been walking for hours when I finally found the house.
-We'd been living in Berlin for three months when we had to
leave.
2: Something that finished just
before another event in the past. This is usually used to show a result at a
time in the past. It's very similar to the present
perfect continuous, but the action finishes before another time in the past,
rather than finishing before the present.
-The pavement was wet, it had been raining. (The rain had
finished before the time I'm describing in the past. We could see the result of
the rain.)
-The children had been playing and so the room was a mess!
-I'd been working before I saw you and that's why I was
really tired.
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