100 Past Perfect Continuous Questions for IELTS Speaking Practice

Richard | Love to Learn English

The Past Perfect Continuous tense is used to describe actions that were ongoing in the past before another action or time. For IELTS Speaking or Writing, mastering this tense will help you describe past experiences in a more sophisticated way, which can boost your score in the grammar and coherence categories.

Structure of Past Perfect Continuous:

Subject + had + been + verb(-ing) + (rest of the sentence)

• Subject: This is the person or thing performing the action (e.g., "I", "you", "she", "they").

• Had: The auxiliary verb "had" is always used to form the past perfect aspect.

• Been: "Been" is used as part of the continuous aspect.

• Verb(-ing): The main verb of the sentence is used in its -ing form (e.g., "working", "studying", "waiting").

Here are 100 Past Perfect Continuous questions to help you practice this tense for the IELTS exam. These questions cover various topics, so you can apply them in different contexts.

Questions about Work and Career:

1. How long had you been working at your previous job before you decided to switch careers?

2. What had you been doing to prepare for your current job before you were hired?

3. How long had your company been planning the project before it was finally launched?

4. Had you been studying any new skills before you got your last promotion?

5. How long had you been thinking about changing jobs before you actually did it?

6. What job had you been applying for before you were offered your current role?

7. How long had your boss been pushing for improvements before the company made changes?

8. Had you been attending any workshops before you were promoted at work?

9. How long had your team been working on the presentation before you presented it to the client?

10. How long had your colleagues been using that software before the company switched to a new one?

Questions about Education:

1. What subject had you been studying most before your final exams?

2. How long had you been preparing for your IELTS exam before you took it?

3. Had you been struggling with any subjects before you started getting better grades?

4. How long had your teachers been recommending additional reading before you actually did it?

5. How long had you been taking extra classes before you saw improvement in your scores?

6. What topic had you been researching before you wrote your dissertation?

7. How long had you been considering going to university before you applied?

8. How long had you been studying English before you decided to take the IELTS exam?

9. Had you been practicing speaking English with anyone before your exam date?

10. How long had you been reading books in English before you felt comfortable with the language?

Questions about Hobbies and Interests:

1. How long had you been learning that hobby before you became good at it?

2. What sport had you been playing regularly before you injured yourself?

3. Had you been practicing any instruments before you joined the band?

4. How long had you been drawing before you felt confident enough to show others your art?

5. How long had you been practicing for that event before you won the competition?

6. What kind of books had you been reading before you switched to a different genre?

7. How long had you been taking cooking classes before you started experimenting with your own recipes?

8. Had you been running every morning before you signed up for a marathon?

9. How long had you been working on your photography skills before you decided to pursue it as a profession?

10. What crafts had you been making before you opened an online shop?

Questions about Health and Fitness:

1. How long had you been following that workout plan before you started seeing results?

2. Had you been dieting before you decided to consult a nutritionist?

3. What fitness routine had you been using before you switched to a new one?

4. How long had you been practicing yoga before you noticed an improvement in your flexibility?

5. How long had you been feeling unwell before you went to the doctor?

6. Had you been suffering from any allergies before you decided to get tested?

7. How long had you been going to the gym before you felt comfortable with your routine?

8. What health issues had you been experiencing before you changed your lifestyle?

9. How long had you been doing that exercise before you mastered the technique?

10. Had you been seeing any improvement in your sleep before you changed your habits?

Questions about Travel:

1. How long had you been planning your trip before you booked the tickets?

2. Had you been saving for a long time before you finally traveled abroad?

3. What destinations had you been considering before you chose the one you visited?

4. How long had you been dreaming of visiting that country before you went?

5. What kind of research had you been doing before you made your travel plans?

6. How long had you been learning the local language before you felt comfortable speaking it there?

7. Had you been traveling often before you decided to explore new places?

8. How long had your friends been recommending that destination before you visited it?

9. What activities had you been planning before your trip was unexpectedly canceled?

10. How long had you been looking forward to your holiday before you finally went?

Questions about Family and Relationships:

1. How long had you been dating before you decided to get married?

2. What family traditions had you been following before they changed?

3. How long had your family been living in that house before you moved?

4. Had your parents been encouraging you to study abroad before you made the decision?

5. How long had you been thinking of starting a family before you did?

6. What kind of support had you been receiving from your family before you moved away?

7. How long had you and your partner been talking about buying a home before you purchased one?

8. Had your siblings been helping you before you managed to do it on your own?

9. How long had your parents been working at their jobs before they retired?

10. What had your friends been suggesting before you finally took their advice?

Questions about Technology and Innovation:

1. How long had you been using that software before it became outdated?

2. What gadgets had you been relying on before you upgraded to newer models?

3. How long had the company been working on that app before it was released?

4. Had you been experiencing any issues with your old phone before you decided to replace it?

5. How long had the developers been testing the product before it was launched?

6. How long had you been using social media before you decided to take a break?

7. What tools had you been using before you discovered better alternatives?

8. How long had you been waiting for that technology to be available before you could purchase it?

9. Had you been participating in any online communities before you found the one you liked?

10. How long had your company been implementing new technologies before you noticed changes?

Questions about Daily Life:

1. How long had you been commuting to work before you decided to move closer?

2. What had you been doing every morning before you changed your routine?

3. How long had you been following that schedule before you started to feel overwhelmed?

4. Had you been cooking at home often before you started ordering takeout?

5. How long had you been spending time on that hobby before you had to give it up?

6. How long had your neighbors been living next door before they moved?

7. Had you been using public transportation before you got your own car?

8. How long had you been relying on that service before you found a better option?

9. What chores had you been neglecting before you finally decided to do them?

10. How long had you been volunteering in your community before you took a break?

Questions about Future Plans (referring to past preparations):

1. How long had you been thinking about your future career before you chose your current path?

2. Had you been saving money before you decided to go back to school?

3. What kind of future projects had you been considering before you chose one to pursue?

4. How long had you been preparing for your future before you felt confident in your plans?

5. How long had your company been preparing for the merger before it happened?

6. What plans had you been making for your future before you decided to change them?

7. How long had you been planning to move to a new city before you finally did it?

8. Had you been looking for future investments before you decided on one?

9. How long had you been considering further studies before you finally enrolled?

10. What career path had you been envisioning before you made your final choice?

Questions about Miscellaneous:

1. How long had it been raining before you decided to cancel your plans?

2. Had you been feeling stressed before you took a vacation?

3. What had you been hoping for before your situation changed?

4. How long had you been waiting before the concert finally started?

5. Had you been expecting a different result before the final decision was made?

6. How long had they been investigating the issue before they found a solution?

7. How long had you been experiencing difficulties before someone helped you?

8. What had you been thinking about before you made your final decision?

9. How long had you been working on that project before it was completed?

10. Had you been considering any other options before you made your choice?

Final Thoughts

Practicing these 100 Past Perfect Continuous questions will help you become more comfortable using this tense in your IELTS Speaking and Writing exams. Incorporate them into your study routine, and you’ll find that describing past actions and events will come more naturally to you. Good luck!

Next steps?

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