Question

What does past perfect mean?​

Answer 1

The past perfect tense refers to an event that occurred/happened before another event that also occurred in the past.

Example: When they arrived, we had already started eating.

Answer 2

The past perfect refers to a time earlier than before now. It is used to make it clear that one event happened before another in the past. It does not matter which event is mentioned first - the tense makes it clear which one happened first.