Past perfect continuous (tinha estado fazendo)
O past perfect continuous descreve uma ação que vinha acontecendo havia algum tempo antes de um momento no passado. Forma: had been + -ing, como o “estava esperando havia uma hora” do português.
| forma | |
|---|---|
| + | I had been waiting for an hour. |
| – | She hadn’t been sleeping well. |
| ? | How long had they been living there? |
Quando usar
- Duração até um momento passado, muitas vezes com for / since / how long: We had been driving for six hours when the car broke down.
- Resultados visíveis de uma atividade anterior: His eyes were red. He had been crying.
- Compare: I had read the book (terminei) e I had been reading (a atividade, talvez sem terminar).
Exemplos
- It had been raining, so the streets were wet.Tinha chovido, por isso as ruas estavam molhadas.
- She had been working there for ten years before she left.Ela trabalhava lá havia dez anos quando saiu.
- I was tired because I had been studying all night.Eu estava cansado porque tinha passado a noite estudando.
- How long had you been waiting when the bus came?Há quanto tempo você esperava quando o ônibus chegou?
- He was out of breath because he had been running.Ele estava sem fôlego porque tinha corrido.
Erros comuns
- ✗ We were waiting for two hours when the plane finally landed.✓ We had been waiting for two hours when the plane finally landed.O português diz “esperávamos havia duas horas”; a duração até um momento passado pede had been + -ing.
- ✗ She was tired because she had been work all day.✓ She was tired because she had been working all day.Depois de had been, o verbo vai para -ing: working.
- ✗ How long were you living in Lisbon before you moved?✓ How long had you been living in Lisbon before you moved?O português diz “há quanto tempo você morava em Lisboa”, no imperfeito, mas para a duração até um momento passado o inglês usa how long had you been.
- ✗ The floor was wet because it has been raining.✓ The floor was wet because it had been raining.Numa história no passado, usa-se had been, e não has been.
- ✗ They had been owning the shop for years.✓ They had owned the shop for years.own é um verbo de estado e não vai para o continuous: had owned.