The Pluperfect and Future Perfect Tenses

Magister HendersonLatin II

The Tenses of the Perfect System

• The perfect system is made up of three tenses: the perfect, pluperfect, and future perfect.

• All three of these tenses are built off the third principal part of the verb.

• The method used to form the pluperfect and future perfect tenses is the same for all verbs, even irregular ones.

Forming the Pluperfect Tense

• Take the third principal part of the verb and drop the -ī.

• Add the following endings, which are identical to the imperfect tense of esse:

Singular Plural

First Person -eram -erāmus

Second Person -erās -erātis

Third Person -erat -erant

About the Pluperfect Tense

• The pluperfect tense shows a past action that has been complete even from a past perspective.

• It is translated with the helping verbs “had” or “had been”.

• The word “pluperfect” is a contraction of the Latin phrase: plūs quam perfectum (“more than complete”).

Forming the Future Perfect Tense

• Take the third principal part of the verb and drop the -ī.

• Add the following endings, which are nearly identical to the future tense of esse:

Singular Plural

First Person -erō -erimus

Second Person -eris -eritis

Third Person -erit -erint

About the Future Perfect Tense

• The future perfect tense shows a future action that has yet to be completed, but will be from a future perspective.

• It is translated with the helping verbs “will have” or “will have been”.

• It is the only of the six tenses that can not be the main verb of main clause; it can only be used in subordinate clauses.

Pluperfect and Future Perfect Forms

Pluperfect Singular Plural

1st Person amāveram = I had loved amāverāmus = we had loved

2nd Person amāverās = you had loved amāverātis = you had loved

3rd Person amāverat = he / she had loved amāverant =they had loved

amō, amāre, amāvī, amātus = to love

Future Perfect Singular Plual1st Person amāverō = I will have loved amāverimus = we will have loved

2nd Person amāveris = you will have loved amāveritis = you will have loved

3rd Person amāverit = he will have loved amāverint = they will have loved