Grammar Smart, 3rd Edition: A Guide to Perfect Usage

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Acknowledgments
Fortheirsparklinggrammaticalknow-howandgenerallyinspirationalpresences,ThePrinceton
ReviewwouldliketothankMarciaLerner,JenniferGrant,TerezeGlück,LisaCornelio,Thomas
Glass,StuartMickle,JulianFleisher,LauricePearson,andBetsyGoldstein.
ThePrincetonReviewwouldalsoliketogivespecialthankstoDavidStollforhishardworkin
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Contents
Cover
TitlePage
Copyright
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part1:TheNamesofThings
A. Nouns
B. Adjectives
C. Verbs
Tense
PrincipalParts
D. Adverbs
E. Pronouns
PersonalPronouns

MirrorPronouns
RelativePronouns
QuestionPronouns
PointingPronouns
IndefinitePronouns
F. Prepositions
G. Conjunctions
CoordinatingConjunctions
CorrelativeConjunctions
SubordinatingConjunctions
H. Interjections
I. Articles
Summary
BattingPracticePart1
Part2:TheSentence
A. TheSubject


B. ThePredicate
C. Predicate:TheSequel
TheDirectObject
TheIndirectObject
D. Phrases
PrepositionalPhrases
Verbals
InfinitivePhrases
GerundPhrases
ParticipialPhrases
E. Clauses
NounClauses

AdjectiveClauses
AdverbClauses
Summary
Part3:PuttingItAllTogether
A. Agreement
Subject-VerbAgreement
PronounAgreement
B. ParallelConstruction
C. MisplacedModifiers
D. FaultyComparison
E. Idioms
F. Diction
G. Redundancy
H. VoiceAndMood
I. Gender-NeutralWriting
Summary
BattingPractice,Part3
Part4:Punctuation
A. ThePeriod
B. TheQuestionMark
C. TheExclamationPoint
D. TheComma
E. TheSemicolon


F. TheColon
G. Parentheses
H. TheDash
I. TheApostrophe
J. TheHyphen

K. QuotationMarks
Part5:Commonly-AskedQuestionsandAnswers
Part6:7EasyWaystoLookBad
Part7:Glossary
Part8:TheWorldSeries
AnswerKey


Introduction


HowImportantIsGrammar,Really?
Becauseyouarereadingthesewords,weassumeyoualreadybelievegrammarisimportant.
In fact, it is the bedrock of clear communication. While you may communicate informally with
friendsorfamily(wedo!),whenitcomestotheacademicandprofessionalrealm,writingwell
and speaking well require the proper use of grammar. The rules of grammar exist to ensure
clarity, and proper use of grammar shows you care about effective communication. It is
awesome that you are interested in learning more about how to own English language
grammar,asdoingsowillgiveyouanincredibletoolthatyoucanusethroughoutyourlife.
Theproperuseofgrammarwillleadtobettergradesonessaysinhighschoolandcollege.
Grammaristestedonbothmajorcollegeentranceexams,theSATandtheACT.
Yourcollegeapplicationessaysneedtobegrammaticallyperfect.
Ifyouwanttogotobusinessschool,grammaristestedonthebusinessschoolentrance
exam,theGMAT.
Youwillrelyonyourknowledgeofgrammarinanyjobthatrequiresyoutowrite–andmost
professionaljobsdo!
Let’s take a look at how grammar serves to clarify what could be ambiguous. For each
sentence,writewhatthesentenceactuallymeans(whichmaybedifferentfromwhatitistrying
tosay),andthentrytocorrectthesentence.
Let’seatgrandpa!

Toiletonlyfordisabledelderlypregnantchildren.

TheHungerGamesstarJoshHutchersonhasanewhomeaswellasanewnosewhichused
tobeownedbythelateHeathLedger.

Employeesmustwashalltheirhandspriortoreturningtowork.


Eatenforgoodhealth,peopleenjoyfreshfruitforitssweettaste.

Andatrickyone:
Weinvitedthestrippers,KatyPerryandJay-Z.

Turntothispagetoseeifyougotthemallright!Foranythatyoumissed,you’llfindoutwhythe
correctedversionsarerequiredasyoureadthebook.

GettingStarted:YourKnowledge,YourExpectations
Yourroutetomasteryofgrammardependsalotonhowyouplantousethisbook.Makingyour
gameplanstartswithknowingwhereyouare,andwhereyouwanttogo.
First,let’sestablishwhyyouareusingthisbook.
Mygoalisto
1. becomeagrammarrockstar;Iwanttoknowitall.
2. masterthegrammartestedontheSAT.
3. masterthegrammartestedontheACT.
4. masterthegrammarontheGMAT.
Basedonyouranswerabove,respondtothefollowingquestions.
GoalNumber

Question

1,2,3,4

HowcomfortableareyouwiththenamesofPartsofSpeech?
(A)Completely,downtoreflexivepronouns
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasnounsandverbs
(C)Uh,what?
HowcomfortableareyouwiththeElementsofSentences?


1,2,3,4

(A)Completely,downtopredicates
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchassubjectsandobjects
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,3,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithSubject-VerbAgreement?
(A)Completely,downtocollectivenouns
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasignoringirrelevantprepositional
phrases
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,3,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithPronoun-NounAgreement?
(A)Completely,downtocollectivepronouns
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasheversushim
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,3,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithParallelConstruction?
(A)Completely,downtoeither…or
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchaslists
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithMisplacedModifiers?
(A)Completely,downtoamodifierattheendofasentence
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasamodifieratthebeginningofa
sentence
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithComparisonFlaws?
(A)Completely,downtowhentousethatorthose
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasnoticingmissingapostrophes
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,3,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithIdioms?
(A)Completely,downtofalloff(notoffof)thebed
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchastryto(notand)
(C)Uh,what?

1

HowcomfortableareyouwithDiction?
(A)Completely,downtoindifferentversusdisinterested
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchascanversusmay
(C)Uh,what?

1,2,4

HowcomfortableareyouwithRedundancy?
(A)Completely,downtoreasonandbecause
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchassmallinsize
(C)Uh,what?
HowcomfortableareyouwithCommas?
(A)Completely,downtoappositives


1,2,3,4

(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasintroductoryclauses
(C)Uh,what?

1

HowcomfortableareyouwithPeriodsversusSemicolons?
(A)Completely,downtowhentousesemicolonsinalist
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasthesimilaritybetweenthetwo
(C)Uh,what?

1,3

HowcomfortableareyouwithColons?
(A)Completely,downtotheneedforacompleteideabeforethe
colon
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasusingacolonbeforealist
(C)Uh,what?

1,3

HowcomfortableareyouwithDashes?
(A)Completely,downtoitsroleasacolon
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchasusingthemtosetoffanaside
(C)Uh,what?

1,3

HowcomfortableareyouwithApostrophes?
(A)Completely,downtotheiruseinpronouns
(B)Iknowthebasics,suchaswhentousethemwithnouns
(C)Uh,what?

1

How comfortable are you with Parentheses, Hyphens, Question
Marks,QuotationMarks,Voice,andMood?
(A)Completely
(B)Partially
(C)Uhwhat?

YourGuideToGettingTheMostOutOfThisBook

Thisbookisdesignedtoprovideinstructionandpracticeacrossasmany—orasfew—subject
areasasisappropriatetohelpyouachieveyourgoal.Readontofindouthowtogetthemost
outofthisbookbasedonyouranswerstothequestionsabove.

YourLearningPlan
Beginwithsubjectsforwhichyouselectedchoice(C).Thereferenceguideonthispage
indicateswhichchaptersandsectionsyoushouldreview.Eachsubjecthasatleastone
shortquiz;donotmoveontoanewsubjectuntilyouhavemasteredthesequizzes.
Next,prioritizesubjectsforwhichyouselectedchoice(B),againusingthereferenceguide


onthispage.Eachsubjecthasatleastoneshortquiz;donotmoveontoanadditional
subjectuntilyouhavemasteredthesequizzes.
ReadParts5through7ofthisbooktoensureunderstandingoftheadvicecoveredthere.
TakethequizzesinPart8.Ifaquizdoesn’tgowell,determinewhatsubjectsneedfurther
review,andgobacktotherelevantchapterorchapters.Thenre-takethequiz.

MakeaGamePlan
Setyourselfupforsuccessbymakingsureyouknowwhatyouaredoingandwhen!
Ofthesubjectslistedinthereferenceguidebelow,circleYesorNotoindicatewhichsubjects
youwillstudy.Useyouranswerstothequestionsabovetodecide.

ReferenceGuide


Iwilldevote___minutesoneachofthefollowingdaystoimprovingmygrammar:
__Monday__Tuesday__Wednesday__Thursday__Friday__Saturday__Sunday

FAQ

Q:IfasubjectisnottaggedtotheSAT,ACT,orGMAT,doesthatmeanthesubjectwon’tbe
tested?
A: Not necessarily. If we have tagged a grammar subject to a test, that subject is tested
frequentlyonthetest,suchthatyoucannotavoidmasteringthesubjectifyouhopetoachievea
highscore.Ifyourgoalistoachieveaperfectscore,however,youshouldmasterallsubjectsin
thisbook.
Q: Aren’t some rules of grammar and punctuation in dispute, such as whether a comma is
neededbeforethewordandinalist?
A: That is true. Where there is a lack of consensus, the rules in this book are taught
consistently with the way the rules are tested on the SAT, ACT, and GMAT. Outside of
standardized testing, you may consult the style guide of your choice or follow the style guide
usedbyyourschoolorworkplace.
Q: You just mentioned style guides. I am hooked on grammar and usage and want to learn
more.WhatshouldIread?
A: There are many classic works on grammar and usage. We recommend The Chicago
ManualofStyle,Follett’sModernAmericanUsage,andTheElementsofStylebyStrunkand
White.(Yes,wedidincludethecommabeforethewordand!)
Q:Ihavecompletedthisbook,buttherearestillsometopicsthatgivemetrouble.Whathelpis
available?
A: The Princeton Review offers academic tutoring, including for grammar, and also offers
courses and tutoring for SAT, ACT, and GMAT. For more information, visit
PrincetonReview.comorcall1-800-2REVIEW.


AnswersToFlawedSentences
Let’seatgrandpa!
Means:It’stimetoeatourgrandpa.(Mmmmmm…grandpa.)
Corrected:Let’seat, grandpa!
Toiletonlyfordisabledelderlypregnantchildren.

Means: The toilet can be used for those unique people who are both old and young and both
pregnantanddisabled.
Corrected:Toilet isforuseby only thosewhoaredisabled, elderly, pregnant, orchildren.
TheHungerGamesstarJoshHutchersonhasanewhomeaswellasanewnosewhichused
tobeownedbythelateHeathLedger.
Means:JoshHutchersonboughtHeathLedger’snose.(Perhapsheboughtitatanauction?)
Corrected:TheHungerGamesstarJoshHutchersonhasanewnose, aswellasanewhome,
whichusedtobeownedbythelateHeathLedger.
Employeesmustwashalltheirhandspriortoreturningtowork.
Means: It is not enough for an employee to wash one or even two hands; all hands must be
washed.(Howmanyhandsdoyouhave?)
Corrected: Allemployeesmustwashtheirhandspriortoreturningtowork.
Eatenforgoodhealth,peopleenjoyfreshfruitforitssweettaste.
Means: People are eaten for good health and, by the way, also enjoy fresh fruit for its sweet
taste.(Mmmmmm.People.)
Correctedoption1:Eatenforgoodhealth, freshfruitisenjoyedbymanypeopleforitssweet
taste.
Corrected option 2: While people eat fresh fruit for good health, they enjoy the fruit for its
sweettaste.
Weinvitedthestrippers,KatyPerryandJay-Z.
Means:Weinvitedthestrippers,namelyKatyPerryandJay-Z.(Thatmusthavebeenquitethe
stripshow!)
Corrected:Weinvitedthestrippers, KatyPerry, andJay-Z.


FinalThoughts
Byusingthisbook,youhaveshownyourselftobesomeonewhoidentifiesgoalsandsetsout
to achieve them. Because you will increase your knowledge of grammar, you will become a
moreeffectivecommunicator,bothinwritingandinspeech.Stickingtoascheduleandseeking
outhelpwhenyouneeditwillonlyaddtoyourpotentialtoachieve.Theoldsaying“Knowledge

is power” is especially true when it comes to understanding the rules of language; you’re well
onyourwaytoowningEnglish;whatcomesafterthatisuptoyou.Andmostimportantly,enjoy
thejourney,whichstartsnow!


PART1

TheNamesofThings


“Partsofspeech”isnotexactlythekindofsubjectthatusuallycomesupatparties—oratwork
either, for that matter. But even though you may not be aware of it, every time you speak or
writeyouarenimbly(ornotsonimbly)workingwithpartsofspeech,arrangingyoursentences
according to parts of speech, and possibly even making jokes that hinge on parts of speech.
What this chapter sets out to do is to broaden our already intuitive knowledge of parts of
speech—tomakethesubjectalittleclearerandmoreusefultoyou.
Determiningpartsofspeechisnothingmorethandeterminingthefunctionaparticularwordhas
in a sentence. Different words, or groups of words, have different functions, and you will be
able to avoid making errors—and put together a handsome sentence—if you are a whiz at
determiningpartsofspeech.Thinkofitlikethis:ifyouaregoingtobuildatable,youhaveto
know what nails, screws, wood, nuts, and bolt look like, and also what their functions are. To
understandpartsofspeechistounderstandthematerialsofmakingsentences.
Themostfoolproofwaytodeterminepartofspeechistolookupthewordinadictionary.The
partofspeechislisted,abbreviatedandinitalics,rightafterthepronunciation:
perspicacious\,pǝr-spǝ-’ka-shǝs\adj[L
perspicac-,perspicax,fr.Perspicere](1640):
ofacutementalvisionordiscernment:keensyn
seeshrewd—perspicaciouslyadv—perspicaciousness
n—perspicacityn
So what have we got here? Perspicacious means shrewd, smart, keen. It’s an adjective, a

word used to describe something or somebody. By making small changes to the ending, you
canusethewordasanadverb.
Althoughhehadpoorgrades,thestudentperspicaciouslyansweredthequestionsinhisoral
exam.
Orasanoun.
Duringhisoralexam,thestudentdemonstratedagreatdealofperspicacity.
Again the difference between one part of speech and another is the role the word is
performing.Thischapterwillshowyouthefunctionsofthepartsofspeech,andfromtherewe
willmoveontothebigpicture:thesentence.

A.Nouns
Nouns are “people, place, and thing” words. It is easy to see that objects are nouns—things
such as qualities and ideas can be nouns too—love is a noun, as is egotism, and spoilage.


Nouns can be singular, when you are talking about one thing (box); and nouns can be plural,
whenyou’retalkingaboutmorethanonething(boxes).
Beingabletospotnounsisimportantbecausethesubjectofasentenceisalwaysanounora
pronoun(we’llcoverpronounsinalittlewhile).

QuickQuiz#1
Notethenounsandpronounsinthefollowingparagraph:

ZachMorrisandCaseyJonesarethehostsofawonderfulfreeshowcaseatBlastMasters
Club featuring the best musicians based in the Kansas City area. Although they don’t play
any instruments, Zach and Casey are great at off-the-cuff banter. The musicians featured
arethecreamofthecrop,andtheheadlinerisaladywhousesthestagenameToothFairy.
SheisahardrockerwhohailsfromNewYorkCityandsheneverletsyouforgetthatshe’s
fromtheBigApple.ShehasknownZachandCaseyforoverfifteenyearsandtheytypically
allspendSundayshangingoutatadinertenminutesawayfromtheclub.

Clickherefortheanswers.

RulesforNouns
1. If you aren’t sure whether a word is a noun, put a or the in front of the word, and if that
makessense,thewordisanoun.(amistake,themood,thedanger)
2. Collective nouns are nouns that stand for an entire group, but are generally thought of as
singular. Family, committee, and furniture are collective, because even though each noun
containsmorethanoneelement,itisthoughtofasonegroup,andisthereforesingular.
Thefurniturehasarrived.(collectivenoun,singularverb)
3. Nouns that have Latin endings are often mistaken for singular when they are really plural.
Noteverypluralnounendsin-s.Watchoutforthefollowingwords:
singular

plural

alumna

alumnae(female)

alumnus

alumni(male)

bacterium

bacteria

criterion

criteria

datum

data

medium

media


memorandum

memoranda

Asingularsubjecttakesasingularverb,andapluralsubjecttakesapluralverb.Therefore:
Thealumnaewerewhoopingitupattheirtenthreunion.(pluralalumnae,pluralverbwere)
DuringtheMichaelJacksontrial,themediawereoutofcontrol.(pluralmedia,pluralverbwere)
4. Proper nouns are names of people, specific places, and particular groups and events.
Proper nouns are always capitalized: LeBron James; Paris, Texas; Central Intelligence
Agency;theWaroftheRoses.
5.Often,aword(orgroupofwords)thatlookslikeaverbactsasanoun.Inotherwords,itis
thesubjectofaverb.Forexample:
SkiingisWanda’sfavoritesport.
Toknowmeistoloveme.
Wanda’s favorite sport is a noun so even though skiing can be used as a verb (I went skiing
today)inthiscase,skiingisactingasanoun,andisthesubjectoftheverbis.Thisiscalleda
gerund.Toknowistheinfinitiveformoftheverbknow.Here,toknowisthesubjectoftheverb
is,soit,too,isactingasanoun.We’llcoverthismoreindepthinPart2.

QuickQuiz#2

Inthefollowingsentences,notethenounsandlabelthemsingular,plural,orproper:

1.ThealienssatonmySubaruanddrankfruitjuice.
2.Thedancecommitteewasconsideringall-blackdecorationsfortheprom.
3.Mylunchiscrawlingwithbacteria!
4.Swimmingisveryrelaxing.
5.OnWednesday,WandawenttoWichitatowaitforWilbur.

B.Adjectives
Adjectives are descriptive words. Gorgeous, hideous, smelly, baggy, and pathetic are all
adjectives.Theydescribeormodifynouns.
Less obviously descriptive are adjectives that show which one or how many: that man, his
dessert,enoughmeatloaf,everydog.Seehowtheadjectivesclarifywhichnoun(orhowmany


ofeachnoun)isbeingtalkedabout?(SeethefollowingQuickQuiz#3)

QuickQuiz#3
Notetheadjectivesintheparagraphsbelow.

ThedayBillywasborndarkthundercloudssweptacrossthesky.Hislovingparentsglanced
outthehospitalwindowandsawjaggedlightningcrashtotheground.
“Isthisabadomen?”Billy’sbaldingmotherasked.
“Don’t be superstitious,” Billy’s balding father said, but secretly he wondered whether the
scary weather would forebode trouble for young Billy. Billy’s father had seen Rosemary’s
Babyearlierthatweek,andhepeekedintothebrand-newbassinettoseeifBillylookedlike
anewbornbabyoranewbornmonster.
AsBillygrewuphisparentswererelievedtoseehownormalhewas.Billytalkedbacktohis
parents,destroyedthehouse,refusedtoeatgreenvegetables,andcamehomebloodyfrom
theplaygroundjustlikeanyotherkid.

Billy’s parents were none too perceptive, and there were other, more subtle signs—signs
thatBillywasweirderthanyouaveragechild—thattheyfailedtosee.
Clickherefortheanswers.

RulesforAdjectives
1. An adjective like ugly can be relative; in other words, you aren’t necessarily either ugly or
not ugly—you can be ugly to degrees. To show this kind of comparison, there are three
formsofadjectives:

If you are comparing only one thing to another, from the comparative by adding -er to the
adjective.
Mydogisuglierthanyourdog.
If you are comparing more than two things, form the superlative by adding -est to the
adjective.


Mydogistheugliestdogonearth.
2. Someadjectivesdonotlendthemselvestoadding-eror-est to the stem. In these cases,
use more as the comparative and most as the superlative. Your ear should be able to
discernwhichformisappropriate;whenindoubt,usemoreormost.
Yourdogismorebeautifulthanmydog.
ThatisthemostunbelievablethingIhaveeverheard.
3. Some adjectives are absolute—you either have the quality or you don’t. So there is no
comparativeorsuperlativeforadjectivessuchasperfect,dead,square,oressential.
Youcan’tbedeaderthatsomeoneelsewhoisonlydead.Andyouknowfromgeometrythat
squares must have four equal sides and four right angles—so a shape either conforms to
thatdefinitionoritdoesn’t.Essentialmeansnecessary;thequalityisn’trelative.
Keep in mind that when advertisers scream “This soap will make your whites whiter!” they
maysellmoredetergent,buttheyaremisusinganabsoluteadjective.

You get the idea. If you’re wondering about a word that’s not on the list, think about its
meaning.Doesitseemtoexpressanabsolutequality?
4. Adjectivesthatdescribehowmuchorhowmanyareoftenmisused.Ifyouaretalkingabout
something that you can count individually, use fewer or many. If you are talking about
somethingthatcan’tbecountedindividually—somethingthat’smorelikeablob,oraquantity


—useless,alotof,much.
Iatefewerfrenchfriesthanyoudid.
YouatelessmashedpotatoesthanIdid.

QuickQuiz#4
IdentifyingAdjectives
Notetheappropriateadjective:

1.LastnightIate(fewer,less)marshmallowsthanWandadid.
2.Sheconsideredthemarshmallowtobe(aperfect,themostperfect)food.
3.Inratingmarshmallowsandoysters,Wandalikedmarshmallows(best,better).
4.“Amarshmallowis(spongierthan,thespongiestof)anyotherfood,”shesaid.
5.Althoughsheate(many,much)marshmallows,sheate(fewer,less)Jell-O.
Adjective Trivia Question: In some languages, French for example, adjectives of a certain
typeprecedethenoun,andothersfollowthenoun.InEnglish,adjectivesalmostalwayscome
before the noun: a happy fellow, green apples. Now for bonus points: name an English
adjectivethatisplacedafterthenounitmodifies.Checkyouransweronthispage.

C.Verbs
Withoutaverb,youhavenosentence.Verbsexpresseitheraction(likehit,sprint,ortouch)or
state-of-being (like am, seems, will be). The first kind of verb is called an action verb; the
second kind is called a linking verb. This distinction is not anything to worry about; we only
mentionittoshowthevariousfunctionsofdifferentkindsofverbs.

Put another way, a verb tells what the subject is doing or what is being done to the subject,
evenifthesubjectisdoingnothingmorethanjustexisting.
Therulesforverbschieflyconcerntwocharacteristics:tense,andagreementwiththesubject.
Tenseisdiscussedbelow;foragreement,seePart3,SectionA.

Tense
The tense of a verb places the action at a particular time. The English language has twelve
tensesaltogether,soweareabletobequitepreciseinexplainingwhensomethinghappened.


Although memorizing the names of the tenses is not terribly important, you do want to
understandwhichmomentintimeeachtenserefersto.Thesixbasictensesare:

Nowlet’stakealookatwhatmomentintimeeachtenseindicates.
Present:The“now”tense.Usethepresenttenseif
1. Theactionishappeningrightnow:Iamhungry(rightnow).
2. Theactionhappenshabitually:Iamhungryeveryafternoon.
3. Youarestatingafact:ElvisCostelloisagreatsongwriter.
4. Youwantdramaticeffectinfiction,orinexpositorywriting:Thephonerings.Fitzgeraldis
moreinterestingthanHemingway.(Thisuseofthepresentiscalledthehistoricalpresent.)
5. Youarespeakingaboutthefuture(thisismoreinformal,andifthisseemsconfusing,you
canalwayssafelyusethetensetoaboutthefuture):SheleavesforParisinthemorning.
(Or:ShewillleaveforParisinthemorning.)
PresentPerfect:Usethepresentperfectif
1. Theactionstartedinthepastandcontinuesintothepresentmoment:Ihaveeatensixteen
cookiessofarthisweek.
2. Theactionwasfinishedatsomeearliertimebutaffectsthepresent:Ihaveeatenallofthe
pie,sothereisn’tanyleftforyou.
Past:The“before”tense.Usethepasttenseif
1. Theactionhappenedinthepastanddoesnotcontinuetohappen:Iateit.

PastPerfect:The“evenbeforebefore”tense.Usethepastperfectif
1. Youarediscussinganactionalreadyinthepast,andyouneedtomakeclearthatanother
actionhappenedevenearlier.Thinkofpastperfectasthedoublepasttense:BeforeIate
yourdessert,Ihadeaten87doughnuts.(Ateispasttense,hadeatenispastperfect.)
2. Youhavean“if”clausefollowedbytheconditional(would)andthepresentperfect:IfIhad
thoughtaboutitfirst,Iwouldnothaveeatenallthosedoughnuts.