Speaking Practice past and past perfect.

 Why You Get Stuck:

1. Too many rules – English has tricky verb structures, especially for the past and perfect tenses.

2. Not enough patterns practiced – You may understand the idea, but speaking needs muscle memory.

3. Fear of mistakes – This makes you hesitate, and then you get stuck.

Here's a Simple Breakdown (with examples):

✅ HAS / HAVE (Present Perfect)

• Use when something started in the past and still matters now.

• I have eaten. (I ate before, and now I'm not hungry.)

• She has gone to school. (She went, and she’s still there.)

✅ HAD (Past Perfect)

• Use when something happened before another past event.

• I had eaten before he arrived.

✅ HAS BEEN / HAVE BEEN (Present Perfect Continuous)

• Use when something started in the past and is still continuing.

• I have been studying English for 2 years.

• She has been working since morning.

✅ WOULD (Imaginary, polite, or conditional)

• I would go if I had time. (Imagining the situation)

• Would you like some tea? (Polite)

How to Practice:

1. Use short patterns and repeat them aloud:

   • “I have done it.”

   • “He had already gone.”

   • “I would help you.”

   • “She has been waiting.”

2. Practice mini-stories or examples in past tense.
   I can give you stories to fill in blanks using had, has, have been, would, etc.

3. Record yourself speaking. Listen to it and find where you get stuck.

Practice

Sentence 1:

"I have been learning English for a long time."

Try saying something similar in your own words — or ask questions about it if anything is unclear.

  "I have been watching television since morning."

Just one small improvement for fluency:
👉 "since the morning" is more natural in English.

Corrected version:

"I have been watching television since the morning."

You're using “have been + verb-ing” perfectly — it shows an action that started earlier and is still happening.

Sentence 2:

"She had already left when I reached the station."

Now try your version!

the electricity had already gone when i switched on the television.

Corrected:
“The electricity had already gone off when I switched on the television.”

Explanation:

• We say “gone off” when electricity or power stops working.

• Capitalize “I” always.

Sentence 3:

"If I had known about the meeting, I would have attended."

Your turn!

"if i had known about the exam, i would have given a chance to attend."

Corrected version:
"If I had known about the exam, I would have taken the chance to attend."

Or more simply:
"If I had known about the exam, I would have attended."

“given a chance” is usually something you do to someone else, not yourself. So “taken the chance” fits better here.

Sentence 4:

"She has been working here since 2019."

Your turn!

Sentence:
"kitty has been living here since she was kitten."

Corrected version:
"Kitty has been living here since she was a kitten."

Explanation:

• Add a before “kitten” because we say “a kitten” (one small cat)

• Capitalize Kitty since it’s a name (just for your info)

Sentence 5:

"I would travel more if I had more free time."

Try your own version!

Sentence:
"I would studied more if i had more books."

Here’s the correct version for the past conditional:
"I would have studied more if I had had more books."

Explanation:

• After “would” in this type of sentence, we use “have + past participle” → “would have studied”

• Since you’re talking about the past, and “had more books” is also past, we use “had had” to show the past perfect.

Why this sentence is incorrect:

• “would studied” is not the right verb form.

• After “would” in past unreal conditionals, you must use:
  would + have + past participle
  (not just “would + past tense”)

• “would have studied” = imagined action in the past that didn’t happen.

• “if I had had” = condition in the past perfect (two “had”s).

Notes - but we can also correct this sentence by just changing studied to study. if we talk 

What you might have meant:

• If you meant a present/future imaginary situation →
  “I would study more if I had more books.”
  (present/future unreal, simple past after “if”)

• If you meant a past imaginary situation →
  “I would have studied more if I had had more books.”
  (past unreal, past perfect after “if,” and “would have” in main clause)

Situation	Correct form after “would”	Example sentence
Present/Future Unreal	would + base verb	I would study more if I had more books.
Past Unreal	would + have + past participle	I would have studied more if I had had more books.

Sentence 6 (past tense):

"He had finished his homework before dinner."

Your turn!

Sentence:

"I had finished my dinner before 8 pm."

This is correct! It’s a simple Past Perfect sentence — it means you completed dinner before 8 pm.

Sentence 7:

"They have been waiting for the bus since morning."

Your turn!

"I have been laughing at the drama since morning."

Nice use of the present perfect continuous tense!

Sentence 8:

"He had already eaten dinner when I arrived."

Your turn!

My sentence
“I had already eaten lunch when the drama started.”

Explanation:

• Add “the” before “drama” if you’re talking about a specific event or show.

Sentence 9:

"If I were you, I would take the job."

Your turn!

Great sentence!

"If I were you, I would take the chance."

Explanation:

This is called a present/future unreal conditional, NOT past unreal.

• You’re imagining a situation right now or in the future that’s not true — you’re not actually the other person.

• The structure is:
  If + past simple (were) + would + base verb (take)

Why it’s NOT past unreal:

• Past unreal conditionals use “would have + past participle” (e.g., would have taken).

• This sentence talks about an imaginary situation in the present/future, so it uses the simple past “were” (instead of “was” because this is the “subjunctive” form used for all subjects).

Type	Example	Explanation
Present/Future Unreal	If I were you, I would take the chance.	Imagining something now or in the future that isn’t true.
Past Unreal	If I had taken the chance, I would have succeeded.	Imagining a past event that didn’t happen.