The verb to feel · Conjugation
Past Perfect of feel
The answer: had felt
B2
A past action that happened before another past action.
Quick answer
The Past Perfect of the verb to feel is had felt.
Example: She had already felt better when I arrived.
Full conjugation in the Past Perfect
| Pronoun | Form | Contraction |
|---|---|---|
| I | had felt | I'd felt |
| You | had felt | You'd felt |
| He / She / It | had felt | He'd / She'd / It'd felt |
| We | had felt | We'd felt |
| You (pl.) | had felt | You'd felt |
| They | had felt | They'd felt |
Common mistakes to avoid
1. After had, always the past participle
With feel, the Past Simple and the past participle are the same (felt), so I had felt is easy. But many irregular verbs have two different forms: I had gone, not I had went; I had seen, not I had saw.
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 feel: felt for one action, had felt 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 felt = I had felt. 'd + base form = would: I'd feel = I would feel.
Practice quiz
Going further
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Frequently asked questions
How do you conjugate feel in the Past Perfect?+
Use had + the past participle felt. The form is the same for every person: I had felt, she had felt, they had felt. The short form is 'd: I'd felt.
When do you use the Past Perfect of feel?+
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 feel?+
The past participle of feel is felt. You use it after have, has and had. It is the same as the Past Simple: felt.
What is the difference between had felt and have felt?+
Have felt (Present Perfect) connects the past to now. Had felt (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 feel in the Past Perfect?+
Negative: I hadn't felt (had not). Question: put had before the subject: Had you felt…? The past participle does not change.
Related pages: feel 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/feel/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.
Keep learning
More forms of the verb to feel are coming soon.