What’s the difference between the past tense and the past perfect tense?

This rule applies to American English and follows the Chicago Manual of Style. Though not explicitly mentioned in the New Hart’s Rules, Oxford Style Guide, British English generally follows this rule too.

If you’ve ever paused mid-sentence, wondering whether you should use “had walked” or simply “walked,” you’re not alone. Past perfect and simple past can look similar at first glance, but choosing the right one helps your reader understand the timeline better.

According to The Chicago Manual of Style, both tenses refer to actions that happened in the past, but the past perfect helps you show sequence and clarify which action came first.

Simple past: the go-to tense for past events.

The simple past tense tells us that something happened at a particular time in the past. It’s straightforward, clear, and the most common way to narrate past events in both fiction and nonfiction.

• She walked to the park.

• They finished the project on Tuesday.

• The cat slept on the windowsill.

In storytelling, the simple past usually forms the backbone of the narrative.

Past perfect: for actions completed before another past action.

The past perfect tense, formed with had + past participle, shows that one action was completed before another action in the past.

• She had walked to work before it started raining.

• He couldn’t believe he had forgotten his keys.

• By the time they arrived, the movie had already started.

Notice how past perfect provides context. It situates one event as happening earlier than another, preventing confusion for the reader.

When do you really need past perfect?

Past perfect is especially useful when writing flashbacks or backstory. It signals to the reader that we’re stepping into an earlier time. But remember, you don’t need to keep every verb in past perfect. Introduce the flashback with “had” and then ease into simple past to keep the flow smooth.

Example:

• He remembered the summer when he had first met Sarah. They spent long afternoons by the river, talking until the sun went down.

Here, “had first met” sets the timeline, but the rest works better in simple past.

A quick guide to remembering the difference.

• Use simple past for events that happened and are complete.

• Use past perfect for events that happened before another past event.

• Don’t overuse past perfect—once the order of events is clear, switch back to simple past.