The verb to break · Conjugation
Past Perfect of break
The answer: had broken
B2
A past action that happened before another past action.
Quick answer
The Past Perfect of the verb to break is had broken.
Example: She had already broken the chocolate into pieces when I arrived.
Full conjugation in the Past Perfect
| Pronoun | Form | Contraction |
|---|---|---|
| I | had broken | I'd broken |
| You | had broken | You'd broken |
| He / She / It | had broken | He'd / She'd / It'd broken |
| We | had broken | We'd broken |
| You (pl.) | had broken | You'd broken |
| They | had broken | They'd broken |
Common mistakes to avoid
1. I had broke ❌
After had, use the past participle, not the Past Simple: I had broken. The Past Simple of break is broke, and the past participle is broken.
2. Yesterday I had gone to the cinema ❌
Use the Past Perfect only for the earlier of two past actions. For one past action, the Past Simple is enough: Yesterday I went to the cinema. With break: broke for one action, had broken for the action that came first.
3. 'd + past participle = had
'd can mean had or would. Look at the next word. 'd + past participle = had: I'd broken = I had broken. 'd + base form = would: I'd break = I would break.
Practice quiz
Going further
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Frequently asked questions
How do you conjugate break in the Past Perfect?+
Use had + the past participle broken. The form is the same for every person: I had broken, she had broken, they had broken. The short form is 'd: I'd broken.
When do you use the Past Perfect of break?+
Use it for an action that happened before another action in the past. It shows which action came first: When we arrived, the film had already started. The film started first, and then we arrived. Signal words: before, after, already, by the time.
What is the past participle of break?+
The past participle of break is broken. You use it after have, has and had. It is different from the Past Simple. Learn the three forms together: break, broke, broken.
What is the difference between had broken and have broken?+
Have broken (Present Perfect) connects the past to now. Had broken (Past Perfect) connects an earlier past to a later past. Compare: I have finished my homework (so I can play now) and I had finished my homework before dinner.
How do you make the negative and the question of break in the Past Perfect?+
Negative: I hadn't broken (had not). Question: put had before the subject: Had you broken…? The past participle does not change.
Related pages: break Past Perfect
Pages on a similar topic or with a similar use, so you can keep exploring.
Updated on 12 November 2026 by the Big Challenge teaching team. Every year, more than 500,000 students across Europe take part in our English contest, created in 1999. Our teaching approach →
The Big Challenge · Updated on 12 November 2026 · Source: www.thebigchallenge.com/bl/academy/learn-english/verbs/break/past-perfect
© The Big Challenge. Copying allowed for classroom use. Every year, more than 500,000 students across Europe take part in our English contest, created in 1999.
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More forms of the verb to break are coming soon.