Past Perfect Tense – English Grammar Exercises for B1
You are writing a negative review on a booking website about a terrible experience at a hotel. Choose the correct option (a, b, or c) to complete the sentences and emphasize that the room was in a horrible state because the staff failed to do their jobs before you arrived.
1 When my husband and I finally opened the door to Room 302, we immediately realized the staff _____ the room at all.
(a) didn’t clean
(b) hadn’t clean
(c) hadn’t cleaned
2 The bed was an absolute mess because someone _____ in it just a few hours before we checked in.
(a) had slept
(b) had sleep
(c) slept
3 I was furious. I _____ extra for a luxury suite, only to walk into a disaster.
(a) have paid
(b) had paid
(c) had payed
4 When I yelled at the manager, he admitted that the housekeeping team _____ our early check-in request.
(a) had forgot
(b) forgot
(c) had forgotten
5 The bathroom floor was flooded and covered in dirty towels because the previous guest _____ a shower right before leaving.
(a) had took
(b) had taken
(c) took
6 By the time we arrived at 4:00 PM, the cleaning cart _____ to our floor yet.
(a) hadn’t been
(b) hasn’t been
(c) hadn’t be
7 We went downstairs to complain, but the receptionist who made the error _____.
(a) had already went
(b) already went
(c) had already gone
8 The room smelled awful because the cleaners _____ to empty the trash can from the day before.
(a) failed
(b) have fail
(c) had failed
9 Before I even dropped my suitcases, I saw that nobody _____ the empty water bottles on the desk.
(a) has replace
(b) had replaced
(c) replaced
10 They handed us the key at the front desk, but clearly, they _____ the room’s status in their system.
(a) didn’t check
(b) hadn’t check
(c) hadn’t checked
11 The television was blaring at maximum volume because the maid _____ to turn it off after cleaning up yesterday.
(a) had forgotten
(b) have forget
(c) forgot
12 I demanded a full refund since they _____ the room properly prior to our arrival.
(a) not prepared
(b) hadn’t prepared
(c) haven’t prepared
13 We felt completely disrespected. We _____ the hotel twice last week to confirm our arrival time!
(a) emailed
(b) had email
(c) had emailed
14 As soon as I walked into the living area, I noticed that the previous occupant _____ their dirty shoes on the sofa.
(a) had leaved
(b) left
(c) had left
15 We couldn’t even breathe properly because the air conditioning unit _____ down earlier that morning.
(a) had broken
(b) had broke
(c) broke
16 Only after I started taking photos for my review did I notice someone _____ a half-eaten pizza under the bed.
(a) has hide
(b) had hidden
(c) hid
17 The hotel owner claimed that he _____ the room himself, but the thick layer of dust proved that was a lie.
(a) inspected
(b) have inspect
(c) had inspected
18 We were exhausted from our long flight, but we couldn’t rest because the hotel _____ all basic hygiene standards.
(a) had ignoring
(b) ignored
(c) had ignored
19 I mistakenly assumed the “VIP Package” meant they _____ the suite extra carefully. I was very wrong.
(a) had organized
(b) had organize
(c) organized
20 By the time they finally moved us to a clean room on a different floor, their negligence _____ our first day of vacation.
(a) have ruin
(b) ruined
(c) had ruined
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (c)
Explanation: The realization happened in the past (“realized”), and the lack of cleaning happened before that. (a) is a common mistake (using Past Simple instead of Past Perfect for the earlier action). (b) is a basic structural error (missing the past participle form “-ed”).
2 (a)
Explanation: “Had slept” shows the action of sleeping happened before they checked in. (c) is a common mistake using the Past Simple. (b) uses the base verb instead of the past participle (V3).
3 (b)
Explanation: The payment was completed long before the disappointing moment of walking in. (a) is Present Perfect, which doesn’t fit a past narrative. (c) is a spelling error (“payed” instead of “paid”).
4 (c)
Explanation: The manager “admitted” (Past Simple) something that happened earlier. The V3 of “forget” is “forgotten”. (b) uses Past Simple. (a) incorrectly uses the V2 form (“forgot”) after “had”.
5 (b)
Explanation: The shower happened before the guests arrived. (c) is Past Simple, failing to show the sequence. (a) is a common structural error using V2 (“took”) instead of V3 (“taken”).
6 (a)
Explanation: “By the time” is a strong signal for the Past Perfect. (b) uses Present Perfect, which is incorrect for past timelines. (c) uses the base form “be” instead of the past participle “been”.
7 (c)
Explanation: The receptionist leaving happened before they went downstairs to complain. (b) uses Past Simple. (a) is grammatically incorrect because it uses the V2 (“went”) instead of V3 (“gone”).
8 (c)
Explanation: The failure to empty the trash caused the smell later. (a) is a common error (Past Simple). (b) mixes Present Perfect with a base verb, which is a structural failure.
9 (b)
Explanation: “Had replaced” correctly shows the timeline. (c) uses Past Simple, which sounds like the replacement happened at the same time they dropped the bags. (a) is structurally invalid.
10 (c)
Explanation: They failed to check the system before handing over the keys. (a) is a common mistake (Past Simple). (b) is missing the “-ed” ending for the past participle.
11 (a)
Explanation: The forgetting happened before the guests walked in and heard the TV. (c) is the Past Simple mistake. (b) incorrectly mixes a plural present auxiliary with a base verb.
12 (b)
Explanation: “Prior to our arrival” dictates an action that didn’t happen in the deeper past. (c) uses Present Perfect. (a) lacks an auxiliary verb completely.
13 (c)
Explanation: The emails were sent long before the hotel visit. (a) is Past Simple, missing the “past of the past” emphasis. (b) misses the “-ed” on the main verb.
14 (c)
Explanation: The past participle of “leave” is “left”. The leaving happened before the narrator noticed it. (b) is Past Simple. (a) uses a non-existent word (“leaved”).
15 (a)
Explanation: The breaking down happened earlier that morning, before they arrived. (c) is Past Simple. (b) incorrectly uses the V2 (“broke”) instead of V3 (“broken”).
16 (b)
Explanation: The hiding of the pizza happened before the narrator took photos. (c) uses Past Simple. (a) is grammatically incorrect (Present Perfect with base verb).
17 (c)
Explanation: The owner “claimed” (Past Simple) something he supposedly did earlier (Past Perfect). (a) is Past Simple. (b) is structurally incorrect.
18 (c)
Explanation: The ignoring of the standards happened before and during the failure to rest. (b) uses Past Simple. (a) incorrectly pairs “had” with a continuous “-ing” verb without “been”.
19 (a)
Explanation: The assumption (“assumed”) was about a prior action. (c) uses Past Simple. (b) misses the “-ed” ending on “organize”.
20 (c)
Explanation: “By the time” indicates the ruin happened before they got the clean room. (b) is Past Simple. (a) incorrectly uses the present plural auxiliary “have” and drops the “-ed” on the verb.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- Structure: Subject + had + V3 (Past Participle). For negative sentences, use had not (hadn’t) + V3
- The “Past of the Past”: The primary use of the Past Perfect is to clarify that one event happened before another event in the past. In this hotel context: The staff had failed to clean (Action 1) before I opened the door (Action 2).
- Irregular Verbs Matter: A very common mistake is using the V2 (Past Simple) form instead of the V3 (Past Participle) after “had”. Always remember combinations like had gone (not had went), had broken (not had broke), and had taken (not had took).
- Reporting / Realizing: Verbs of thinking and reporting (e.g., realized, noticed, saw, admitted, claimed) are usually in the Past Simple, and they are frequently followed by a Past Perfect clause to explain what had happened prior to that realization.