What Had Already Happened
Past Perfect
The past perfect expresses an action that had finished before another action took place in the past. The past perfect is often used to provide reasons for making a decision in the past.
Example:
I had already organized the files alphanumerically before the boss announced the new organizing strategy.
She hadn't had time to ping iTunes before a listener downloaded the podcast.
I had already set up anti-phishing protocol before the conman called.
Positive Form:
Subject + had + past participle + (object(s))
I had already organized the files alphanumerically before the boss announced the new organizing strategy.
Negative Form:
Subject + had + not + past participle + (object(s))
She hadn't installed the anti-virus software before downloading files off the internet.
Question Form:
(Question Word) + have + subject + past participle?
Had you archived the files to a the long-term storage medium before you emailed them to Tom?