Past Perfect Continuous Tense Worksheet – Answers

LEVEL 1 – EASY (Beginner)

A. Fill in the blanks

1. She had been studying for two hours before dinner.
2. They had been playing cricket since morning.
3. I had been waiting for the bus for thirty minutes.
4. He had been working in this company for five years.
5. We had been watching television for an hour before the electricity went off.
6. The baby had been crying for a long time.
7. My mother had been cooking since 5 p.m.
8. The children had been running in the playground for an hour.
9. Riya had been dancing for two hours before the programme ended.
10. It had been raining since morning before the weather cleared.

B. Choose the correct option

1. a) had been studying
2. a) had been playing
3. a) had been waiting
4. a) had been teaching
5. b) had been travelling

C. Change into Past Perfect Continuous Tense

1. I had been working in this office.
2. She had been reading a novel.
3. They had been playing football.
4. He had been studying English.
5. We had been waiting for the teacher.
6. The children had been dancing on the stage.

D. Identify the Past Perfect Continuous Tense verb phrases

1. My father had been working in the garden for two hours.
2. The girls had been practising dance since morning.
3. I had been waiting for my friend for thirty minutes.
4. The baby had been sleeping for three hours.
5. They had been travelling since early morning.

LEVEL 2 – HARD (Intermediate)

A. Complete the sentences

1. She had been preparing for her examination for three months before the examination began.
2. They had not been working in the office for long before the manager arrived.
3. Had you been studying for two hours before I called you?
4. My brother had been playing video games for an hour before dinner.
5. The children had not been sleeping for several hours before their mother returned.
6. How long had he been waiting for the doctor before he arrived?
7. We had been living in Delhi for five years before we moved to Mumbai.
8. It had been raining for three hours before the sky became clear.
9. My father had been driving for six hours before he stopped the car.
10. The students had been practising for the competition for several weeks before the final event.

B. Rewrite the sentences

1. She had been reading a book for two hours.

Negative: She had not been reading a book for two hours.

2. They had been playing cricket since morning.

Interrogative: Had they been playing cricket since morning?

3. He had not been working there for five years.

Affirmative: He had been working there for five years.

4. Had you been studying since morning?

Affirmative: You had been studying since morning.

5. The children had been making noise for an hour.

Negative: The children had not been making noise for an hour.

6. Rohan had been learning English for two years.

Interrogative: Had Rohan been learning English for two years?

C. Find and correct the errors

1. She had been studying for two hours.
2. They had been playing cricket since morning.
3. He had been working in this company for five years.
4. I had been waiting for you.
5. We had been preparing for the examination.
6. Had she been dancing for an hour?
7. The children had been sleeping for three hours.
8. He had not been working here since 2020.

D. Make questions using the given question words

1. How long had she been studying?
2. Where had they been playing?
3. Since when had he been working?
4. Why had Riya been crying?
5. How had the boys been travelling?

LEVEL 3 – DIFFICULT (Advanced)

A. Complete the passage

Last month, my family visited our village. We had been planning this trip for several weeks. My father had been working hard to complete his office assignments before the journey. My mother had been preparing food for the trip since early morning. My younger brother had been talking about the village for several days. When we finally reached there, our grandparents had been waiting for us for two hours. They had been living in that village for more than forty years. We felt very happy because we had been looking forward to this visit for a long time.

B. Join the sentences using Past Perfect Continuous and Simple Past Tense

1. I had been studying for three hours when my friend arrived.
2. She had been waiting for the bus for thirty minutes when the bus arrived.
3. They had been playing cricket for two hours when it started raining.
4. He had been working in the company for ten years when he retired.
5. We had been travelling for six hours when we reached the hotel.

C. Choose the correct verb form and explain why

1. had been working – Because the action continued before another past action (she resigned).
2. had been playing – Because Past Perfect Continuous uses been + verb-ing.
3. Had – Because the sentence is an interrogative sentence in the past.
4. had not been sleeping – Because the negative form uses had not been + verb-ing.
5. had been living – Because the action continued for ten years before they moved to India.
6. had – Because the sentence refers to an action before another past event.

D. Arrange the words

1. She had been studying for three hours.
2. They had been playing since morning.
3. I had been waiting for you for an hour.
4. How long had he been working?
5. It had been raining since morning.

E. Convert into questions using the given question words

1. How long had Rahul been studying?
2. Where had she been working for five years?
3. Since when had they been playing football?
4. How had he been travelling?
5. Why had Riya been crying?
6. What had my father been reading for thirty minutes?
7. Where had the children been playing for two hours?
8. Who had they been waiting for for an hour?
9. What had Meena been learning for two years?
10. How long had the workers been constructing the building?

CHALLENGE – MIXED GRAMMAR TEST

A. Identify the sentences

1. She had not been studying for two hours. – Negative
2. Had they been playing football? – Interrogative
3. I had been working since morning. – Affirmative
4. He had not been sleeping properly. – Negative
5. Had your mother been cooking since 5 p.m.? – Interrogative

B. Change into Past Perfect Continuous Tense

1. I had been writing letters.
2. She had been preparing dinner.
3. They had been playing cricket.
4. He had been studying mathematics.
5. We had been waiting for the bus.

C. Fill in the blanks with suitable time expressions

1. She had been studying for three hours.
2. They had been living here since 2020.
3. He had been working before the manager arrived.
4. How long had you been waiting for the bus?
5. The children had been playing all morning.