A Context listening

C!] You are going to hear Peter talking on the radio about a city he visited last week. Here
are two pictures of the city. Which is from last week? Which is from seven years ago?

rlJ � Listen and check if you were right.

Why did Peter go there?
What changes did he see?
CEJ Listen again and complete the sentences below. Stop the recording if you need to.
1 Well, last week I YJ2.i±�4 my home city.
2 When I , Stefan his work for the day ...
3 When we lunch, we by the river.
4 The riverside the factory area .
5 There didn't a sports centre in the city.
6 The engineers it the year I .
7 I to become an engineer .
8 I into the restaurant and I all my old friends.
rl] Look at your answers to A3 and answer these questions.
1 Look at sentences 4 and 5 and complete this statement.
We use to talk about things that were different in the past.
2 Look at the other sentences. Which contain two different verb forms? .
In these sentences did one event happen before the other? .

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B Grammar

[I! Past perfect

We form the past perfect with had + past participle. (See notes on past participles in Unit 6 and
the table of irregular verbs on p. viii.)

I
I/you/he/she/it/we/they had + past participle We'd eaten lunch.
I/you/he/she/it/we/they had not (hadn't)+ past participle I hadn't eaten lunch.
Had I/you/he!she!it!we!they + past participle ... ? Had they eaten lunch?

t'El Past perfect and past simple

We use the past perfect
• to talk about something that happened before a past event:
Last week I visited my home city. It had changed a lot.
THE PAST THE PRESENT
I I
earlier past event (last week) now
It had changed a lot. I visited my home city.

I walked into the restaurant and I saw all my old friends. Stefan had invited them to join us.

THE PAST THE PRESENT

I I
earlier past events (at the same time) now
Stefan had invited them. I walked into the restaurant.
I saw all my old friends.

• in sentences that have when + past simple, to show that one event happened before the other:

'When I arrived, Stefan had finished his work. = 1 He finished work

2 (later) I arrived.

The two actions are separate.

Compare:

When I arrived, Stefan stopped work. I arrived and he stopped

work at that time.

The two actions are probably connected.

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...
�
�
{ Past perfect

CE Past perfect not past simple

We always use the past perfect not the past simple with already, ever, never and just when we
mean before a time in the past:
They'd just started the year I left. (not They just started the year I left.)
I had already decided to become an engineer. (not I already decided)
I'd never seen anything like it. (not I never saw)
A. Already, ever, never and just go between the auxiliary and the main verb. CE
used to
I!you!he!she!it!we!they used to+ verb I used to live in the city.
I/you/he/she/it/we/they did not (didn't) use to+ verb They didn't use to live in the city.
Did l/you/he/she!it!we!they use to + verb ... ? Did she use to live in the city?
We make negatives and questions with did like a regular verb in the past simple (see Unit 5).

A There is no present tense of used to (not I t:tSC te etc.). We use the present simple (see Unit 4).
I meet my friends on Saturday evenings. not [ use te meet myfrimds en S6lturd6ly e·.,·enings
We use the verb used to to talk about the past when we want to emphasise that things are
different now..
It used to be the factory area. (= It isn't the factory area now.)
THE PAST NOW
I I
It used to be the factory area. The factories were knocked down. It's a park.

I used to watch the engineers. (= I don't watch them now.)

We used to see a lot of big lorries in the city. (= We don't see them now.)
There didn't use to be a sports centre in the city. (= There is now.)
Did there use to be less traffic? (= There's a lot of traffic now, but I want to
know if it has increased.) •C3, C4, CS

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1
C Grammar exercises

m::J Complete this email by putting the verbs in brackets into the past perfect.

Hi Billy
Well, I'm home from Africa. The late flight from Paris caused some problems at first but the
holiday was great
Because 1 �.'.cl. �..�r.. . .V.t�it.� (never/visit) that part of the world before, 2 .
(we/ask) the holiday company to book us seats on the bus to the city centre to meet the tour
manager. Our plane was an hour late and we ran through the airport to the car park but when
we arrived the bus 3 Oust/leave). We got a taxi to the main square and found
the company's local office, but the staff 4 (already/go) home for the day.
We 5 (not/bring) our mobiles, because they don't work in that country. At last we
found a post office and luckily it 6 (not/shut) yet, so we called the company's head
office in Canada.
In ten minutes the tour manager was with us. He 7 (go) to the airport to meet us,
because he 8 (realise) our plane was late, but we 9 (not/see) him.
Anyway, he took us to the hotel he 10 (book) for us and bought us dinner.
So everything was fine in the end. And our trip to the jungle was amazing!! I'll show you the
photos when I see you.
XXXX Julie

[!a In each of these sentences, one of the verbs should be in the past perfect. Underline
the verb and write the correction at the end.
1 I wanted to have a shower when I got home. but my sister j_ust had a bath and [Link]'t any
hot water. J::9-A.J��±. ..�i.
2 The concert started when we got to the theatre. so we missed the first two songs ....

3 I couldn't tell my teacher about the film because I never saw it .

4 Freya didn't finish breakfast when I arrived. so I had a coffee while she ate her
toast .
5 The children were very excited about flying because they were never in a plane .
6 Colin didn't know the poem but the other students already studied it .
7 We Just visited Japan so we told our friends some good places to visit when they went there.

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;. :,;:\'

·: . Past perfect

Ci] Fill in the gaps in this conversation with the correct form of used to and a verb from
the box.
be not go have not have live know travel walk

Mina: There's Dahlia in her dad's sports car. Where do they get their money from?
Sara: Don't you know? Her family won the lottery.
Mina: Wow!
Sara: I knew her before that, though. Her family 1 -�� . .J!?.. . \!::'� . ..i.t:! ...0!.t .. r.!?0.:i: ... She
2 to school like all the other children in those days.
Mina: 3 (you) them very well?
Sara: Oh, yes. They 4 friendly people. And her father grew all their
vegetables because they 5 much money.
Mina: They go on holiday a lot now. 6 (they) abroad then?
Sara: No, they 7 away at all.
Mina: They're very lucky now.
Sara: Mmm, but they 8 more friends.
� Complete each sentence to show what was different in the past. Use the word in
brackets and any-others you need with used to/didn't use to+ verb.
1 Patrick 9.:-)9.:-D:i. ..��.. .I9. . .J.���-f!)9.:f!'/.. .. P.h9±9.?..... (photos) but he loves using his new camera.
2 You (lazy) but you're working very hard this term.
3 I (slim) but I've lost weight.
4 Bobby (a bike) but he drives a car now.
5 Bertie (my brother) but they've become friends recently.
6 ora (the cinema) very often but she sees lots of films now.
7 My sister (shy) but she enjoys parties now.
8 We (sport) but we often play tennis these days.
9 Joanna (a vegetarian) but she had a sausage for breakfast.
10 They (the city centre) but their new house is in the country.
tiJ Write true sentences about when you were very young using used to/didn't use to+ verb.
1 I .. d..id..n 't .. u.5'2 .. to .. d..o .. my .. ho�u.x:ir-k .. on a....comr.u +er-_. .
2 ················································································································································································································
3 .
4 .
5 .

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