What Had Been Happening Before Something Occurred
Past Perfect Continuous
The past perfect continuous expresses the duration of an activity up to another point in time in the past. The use of the past perfect continuous stresses that a certain activity had been going on before something important happened.
Example:
We hadn't be speaking long on the phone long before we realized they couldn't manufacture an assemble-to-order product.
They hadn't been producing business for six months before they updated their production process.
How many years had you been working the assembly before you were promoted?
Positive Form:
Subject + had + been + 'ing' form of verb + (object(s)) + time expression
She had been working on lowering production prices for two months when the committee demanded an answer.
Negative Form:
Subject + had + not + been + 'ing' form of verb + (object(s)) + time expression
We hadn't be speaking long on the phone long before we realized they couldn't manufacture an assemble-to-order product.
Question Form:
(Question Word) + had + subject + been + 'ing' form of verb?
How many years had you been working the assembly before you were promoted?
Past Perfect Contrasted with Past Perfect Continuous
The past perfect expresses something that finishes before another activity in the past. The past perfect continuous, on the other hand, expresses the duration of an activity at the moment something important happened in the past.
Past Perfect Examples:
I had already created my production plan before the crisis.
Had you discussed the allocations with the on site manager before production began?
Past Perfect Continuous Examples:
She had been working on lowering production prices for two months when the committee demanded an answer.
How many years had you been working the assembly before you were promoted?