The verb to slay · Conjugation
Past Perfect of slay
The answer: had slain
B2
A past action that happened before another past action.
Quick answer
The Past Perfect of the verb to slay is had slain.
Example: She had already slain the dragon when I arrived.
Full conjugation in the Past Perfect
| Pronoun | Form | Contraction |
|---|---|---|
| I | had slain | I'd slain |
| You | had slain | You'd slain |
| He / She / It | had slain | He'd / She'd / It'd slain |
| We | had slain | We'd slain |
| You (pl.) | had slain | You'd slain |
| They | had slain | They'd slain |
Common mistakes to avoid
1. I had slew ❌
After had, use the past participle, not the Past Simple: I had slain. The Past Simple of slay is slew, and the past participle is slain.
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 slay: slew for one action, had slain 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 slain = I had slain. 'd + base form = would: I'd slay = I would slay.
Practice quiz
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Frequently asked questions
How do you conjugate slay in the Past Perfect?+
Use had + the past participle slain. The form is the same for every person: I had slain, she had slain, they had slain. The short form is 'd: I'd slain.
When do you use the Past Perfect of slay?+
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 slay?+
The past participle of slay is slain. You use it after have, has and had. It is different from the Past Simple. Learn the three forms together: slay, slew, slain.
What is the difference between had slain and have slain?+
Have slain (Present Perfect) connects the past to now. Had slain (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 slay in the Past Perfect?+
Negative: I hadn't slain (had not). Question: put had before the subject: Had you slain…? The past participle does not change.
Related pages: slay 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/slay/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 slay are coming soon.