1. New York had suffered a terrible terrorist attack in 2001(past perfect affirmative)

We'll go through the Past Perfect Tense. First of all, we will study the form. Then we will go back to 2001 when New York city suffered a devastating terrorist attack by Muslim terrorists.

Importante

ADVERB PLACEMENT

Look at the examples to see the position of adverbs such as always, only, never, ever and  just

Paco had only been out of Spain once before he started his round-the-world trip.

Had he ever been to New York before?

Ice skating at Rockefeller Center in New York.
Imagen de Stuck in Customs. Licencia CC.

That's right, they are placed between the auxiliary verb  have and the past participle (just like the Present Perfect):

 

Para saber más

This tense is formed using two components: the auxiliary verb have (in the past tense), and the past participle form of a verb. With a regular verb the past participle ends with -ed (just like the simple past). Irregular verbs have a special past participle form that you have to learn by heart. Try this practice activity.

Ejercicio Resuelto

1. My friends talked about the movie they __________ ( watch).

2. The teacher corrected the tests that the students __________( write).

3. My father lived in the house that their parents __________( build).

4. I passed my driving license test because I __________( study) a lot.

5. Ana was in hospital because she __________( have) an accident.

Write the verbs in Past Perfect Tense.

Comprueba lo aprendido

Pregunta

Say if the following statements about the uses of the Past Perfect are true or false.
1) The Past Perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action in the past.

Respuestas

a) True.

b) False.

Retroalimentación

Pregunta

2) The Past Perfect is used in conditional sentences type II.

Respuestas

a) True.

b) False.

Retroalimentación

Pregunta

3) We use the Past Perfect to show that something started in the past and continued up until another action in the past.

Respuestas

a) True.

b) False.

Retroalimentación

Curiosidad

September 11 attacks

 

Twin towers of the World Trade Center burning.
Imagen de LX. Dominio público.

The September 11 attacks (often referred to as September 11th or 9/11*) were a series of coordinated suicide attacks by al-Qaeda upon the United States on September 11, 2001. On that morning, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone on board and many others working in the buildings. Both buildings collapsed within two hours, destroying nearby buildings and damaging others. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville in rural Pennsylvania after some of its passengers and flight crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C. There were no survivors from any of the flights.

2,973 victims and the 19 hijackers died as a result of the attacks. The overwhelming majority of casualties were civilians, including nationals of over 90 countries. In addition, the death of at least one person from lung disease was ruled by a medical examiner to be a result of exposure to dust from the World Trade Center's collapse.

 

The United States responded to the attacks by launching a War on Terrorism, invading Afghanistan to depose the Taliban, who had harbored al-Qaeda terrorists, and enacting the USA PATRIOT Act. Many other countries also strengthened their anti-terrorism legislation and expanded law enforcement powers. Some American stock exchanges stayed closed for the rest of the week following the attack, and posted enormous losses upon reopening, especially in the airline and insurance industries. The destruction of billions of dollars worth of office space caused serious damage to the economy of Lower Manhattan.

 

The damage to the Pentagon was cleared and repaired within a year, and the Pentagon Memorial was built on the site. The rebuilding process has started on the World Trade Center site. In 2006 a new office tower was completed on the site of 7 World Trade Center. 1 World Trade Center is currently under construction at the site and, at 1,776 ft (541 m) upon completion in 2013, it will become one of the tallest buildings in North America. Three more towers were originally expected to be built between 2007 and 2012 on the site. Ground was broken for the Flight 93 National Memorial on November 8, 2009, and the first phase of construction is expected to be ready for the 10th anniversary of the attacks on September 11, 2011.

Taken from Wikipedia.

 

* In the USA, dates are normally written month/day (in the UK, it's day/month). That's why the attacks on 11th September are called 9/11 and not 11/9.