The verb to run · Conjugation
Past Perfect of run
The answer: had run
B2
A past action that happened before another past action.
Quick answer
The Past Perfect of the verb to run is had run.
Example: She had already run in the park when I arrived.
Full conjugation in the Past Perfect
| Pronoun | Form | Contraction |
|---|---|---|
| I | had run | I'd run |
| You | had run | You'd run |
| He / She / It | had run | He'd / She'd / It'd run |
| We | had run | We'd run |
| You (pl.) | had run | You'd run |
| They | had run | They'd run |
Common mistakes to avoid
1. I had ran ❌
After had, use the past participle, not the Past Simple: I had run. The Past Simple of run is ran, and the past participle is run.
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 run: ran for one action, had run for the action that came first.
3. 'd = had or would?
'd can mean had or would. Usually, the next word tells you: I'd seen = I had seen, I'd see = I would see. With run, the two look the same. So look at the rest of the sentence: already or before suggests had; if suggests would.
Practice quiz
Going further
The English contest tests the Past Perfect of run in real sentences
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Frequently asked questions
How do you conjugate run in the Past Perfect?+
Use had + the past participle run. The form is the same for every person: I had run, she had run, they had run. The short form is 'd: I'd run.
When do you use the Past Perfect of run?+
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 run?+
The past participle of run is run. You use it after have, has and had. It is different from the Past Simple. Learn the three forms together: run, ran, run.
What is the difference between had run and have run?+
Have run (Present Perfect) connects the past to now. Had run (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 run in the Past Perfect?+
Negative: I hadn't run (had not). Question: put had before the subject: Had you run…? The past participle does not change.
Related pages: run 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/run/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 run are coming soon.