We learned in the previous lesson that the pretérito pluscuamperfecto is used to talk about a past action that happened before another past action. Today we are going to learn how to place adverbs and pronouns with the pretérito pluscuamperfecto.
1. The pretérito pluscuamperfecto is usually accompanied by adverbs such as ya (already), antes (before), después (after), nunca (never), and todavía (still). These adverbs are always placed before the auxiliar verb "haber", in contrast to English where adverbs can be placed between the auxiliar verb and the past participle.
2. In a negative sentence, the negative adverb "no" is always placed before the auxiliar verb "haber".
3. When a sentence contains a direct or indirect object pronoun, it is placed before the auxiliar verb "haber".
4. When a sentence contains a reflexive or pronominal verb, the reflexive or pronominal pronoun is placed before the auxiliar verb "haber".
5. When asking questions, it is preferred that the subject is placed after the past participle. Placing the subject before the auxiliar verb "haber" is also gramatically correct.
The pretérito anterior is formed by the auxiliar verb "haber" in the preterit tense followed by the past participle of the main verb. It is the equivalent of the past perfect in English, formed by the auxiliar verb "to have" in the past tense followed by the past participle of the main verb.
The pretérito anterior is not widely used in the spoken language, as it has been displaced by other past tenses such as the pretérito pluscuamperfecto, the pretérito perfecto simple o indefinido, or even sometimes by an infinitive. The pretérito anterior only remains in use in formal situations and literature but it is barely used in daily conversations.
Most common sentences that express the same idea would be:
The pretérito anterior conjugation for regular verbs is:
The pretérito anterior conjugation for irregular verbs is the same as for regular verbs. However, irregular verbs have irregular past participles. See a list of irregular past participles on the pretérito pluscuamperfecto part 1 lesson.
1. The pretérito pluscuamperfecto is usually accompanied by adverbs such as ya (already), antes (before), después (after), nunca (never), and todavía (still). These adverbs are always placed before the auxiliar verb "haber", in contrast to English where adverbs can be placed between the auxiliar verb and the past participle.
| Yo nunca había probado conejo antes de visitar España. I had never tried rabbit before visiting Spain. Cuando volví del supermercado, la lavadora todavía no había terminado de lavar la ropa. When I came back from the supermarket, the washing machine still hadn't finished washing the load. |
2. In a negative sentence, the negative adverb "no" is always placed before the auxiliar verb "haber".
| No habías movido tu coche de sitio en tres días y por eso se lo llevó la grúa. You hadn't moved your car for three days and that's why it got towed. |
3. When a sentence contains a direct or indirect object pronoun, it is placed before the auxiliar verb "haber".
| Los alumnos habían hecho sus deberes antes de ir a clase. Los alumnos los habían hecho antes de ir a clase. The students had done their homework before going to class. Javier había gritado a su Hermana por no haber limpiado su cuarto. Javier le había gritado por no haber limpiado su cuarto. Javier had yelled at his sister for not having cleaned her room. |
4. When a sentence contains a reflexive or pronominal verb, the reflexive or pronominal pronoun is placed before the auxiliar verb "haber".
| Me había afeitado justo después de ducharme. I had shaved right after I took a shower. |
5. When asking questions, it is preferred that the subject is placed after the past participle. Placing the subject before the auxiliar verb "haber" is also gramatically correct.
| ¿Había cocinado tu madre para tanta gente en tu fiesta de cumpleaños? ¿Tu madre había cocinado para tanta gente en tu fiesta de cumpleaños? Had your mom cooked for so many people for your birthday party? |
El Pretérito Anterior
The pretérito anterior is another perfect tense of the indicative mood. The pretérito anterior fundamentally introduces actions or facts that happened immediately before another action or fact in the past.The pretérito anterior is formed by the auxiliar verb "haber" in the preterit tense followed by the past participle of the main verb. It is the equivalent of the past perfect in English, formed by the auxiliar verb "to have" in the past tense followed by the past participle of the main verb.
| Apenas hube salido de casa, me manché de barro los pantalones.Just right after I had left home, I stained my pants with mud. Tan pronto como hubo comenzado el partido, fue suspendido porque empezó a llover. As soon as the game had started, it got canceled because it started to rain. |
The pretérito anterior is not widely used in the spoken language, as it has been displaced by other past tenses such as the pretérito pluscuamperfecto, the pretérito perfecto simple o indefinido, or even sometimes by an infinitive. The pretérito anterior only remains in use in formal situations and literature but it is barely used in daily conversations.
| En cuanto hubimos terminado de comer, nos pusimos a trabajar. Right after we had finished eating, we started working. |
Most common sentences that express the same idea would be:
| En cuanto terminamos de comer, nos pusimos a trabajar. (pretérito indefinido) Right after we finished eating, we started working. Cuando habíamos terminado de comer, nos pusimos a trabajar. (pret. pluscuamperfecto) When we had finished eating, we started working. Justo al terminar de comer, nos pusimos a trabajar. (infinitivo) Right after eating, we started working. |
The pretérito anterior conjugation for regular verbs is:
Pretérito Anterior | CANTAR | BEBER | VIVIR |
| yo | hube cantado | hube bebido | hube vivido |
| tú | hubiste cantado | hubiste bebido | hubiste vivido |
| él, ella, usted | hubo cantado | hubo bebido | hubo vivido |
| nosotros/as | hubimos cantado | hubimos bebido | hubimos vivido |
| vosotros/as | hubisteis cantado | hubisteis bebido | hubisteis vivido |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | hubieron cantado | hubieron bebido | hubieron vivido |
The pretérito anterior conjugation for irregular verbs is the same as for regular verbs. However, irregular verbs have irregular past participles. See a list of irregular past participles on the pretérito pluscuamperfecto part 1 lesson.