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The website says that these sentences are correct:
Ref. britishcouncil.org

We can also use before + past perfect to show that an action was not done or was incomplete when the past simple action happened.
1.They left before I'd spoken to them.
2.Sadly, the author died before he'd finished the series..
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/b1-b2-grammar/past-perfect#:~:text=We%20can%20also%20use%20before,he%27d%20finished%20the%20series.

Ref. Cambridge dictionary

We commonly use before with the past simple tense. It suggests that the second event happened soon after the first one.
3.Before she left, she gave everyone a present.

Why is "before + past perfect" used in first 2 sentences and "before + simple past" in Sentence 3?

Edit 1.
I understand that we can use the past perfect to show the order of two past events. But if we use "before" or "after" (instead of when), we can use Simple Past tense.
I would appreciate if "before + past perfect" for incomplete action mentioned in britishcouncil.org website is explained. I found the same information elsewhere.

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  • The reason why Past Simple is used in 3. is stated in the excerpt. The time between the two actions is short, the act of giving presents happened (just) before she left (the wedding reception).
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented Jul 21 at 5:18
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    Also, in the first two the intended action didn't happen. "They left before I spoke to them" would sound (to my British ears, at least) as though I spoke to them after they had left, which is obviously nonsense.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Jul 21 at 6:57
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    @KateBunting As per the website britishcouncil.org use before + past perfect to show that an action was not done. Both their sentences are unfinished actions. learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/b1-b2-grammar/….
    – James Mathai
    Commented Jul 21 at 7:32
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    The website britishcouncil.org is a well known website for English language learners and I feel they are doing a good job. In the sentence - "They left before I'd spoken to them." - it may be understood that the speaker wanted to convey something important or may have wanted to resolve an issue. The group walked away without waiting to listen.
    – James Mathai
    Commented Jul 22 at 4:57
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    @JamesMathai: You're reading into the situation to think that they left "without waiting to listen". Perhaps the speaker hadn't gotten up the nerve to speak to them or hadn't managed to get free to speak to them. The past perfect doesn't entail the idea that they somehow truncated the conversation and didn't let the speaker finish. That would be "before I'd finished speaking to them".
    – TimR
    Commented Jul 23 at 19:33

2 Answers 2

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(1) You can use the simple past with all three sentences. From an American English point of view, that would be preferred. But if you did use the perfect tense in #1 and #2, you wouldn't use a contraction. You would say "I had" and "he had". I think it's different in British English.

(2) The sentence right above #3 states that the simple past is used because of the word "Before"; that it suggests the second event happened soon after the first event. Even though I personally prefer the simple past, IMHO you can use the perfect tense in #3, although I would probably add the word "already":

Before she left, she had already given everyone a present.

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1.They left before I'd spoken to them. OR They left before I spoke to them.

2.Sadly, the author died before he'd finished the series. OR Sadly, the author died before finished the series.

3.Before she left, she gave everyone a present. Before she left, she'd given everyone a present.

You use the past perfect if you want to say that one thing preceded another. It's your choice.

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  • British council site mentioned past perfect tense is specifically mentioned unfinished actions. I think it means we can't use simple past in these cases or past perfect works better for these cases.
    – James Mathai
    Commented Jul 22 at 0:11
  • @JamesMathai It gives a series of reasons for using the past, not just the unfinished action one and not just the sentence you cite. The main point is that one thing preceded another. That is what characterizes all of them.
    – Lambie
    Commented Jul 22 at 12:57
  • I repeat, it is your choice and this is not a grammar point.
    – Lambie
    Commented Jul 23 at 18:28

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