Past Simple vs Past Perfect Listening Practice | What Happened First?

por Feb 27, 20264 Comentarios

Can You Hear What Happened First?

English doesn’t only tell you what happened.
It also tells you when it happened relative to another past event.

The past perfect is often the clue.

Listen to the short story and see if you can follow the timeline. 

Transcript here: 

Transcript :

Yesterday was a terrible day at work.

When I arrived at the office, my manager looked stressed.
He had already called me twice, but I hadn’t seen my phone.

I opened my laptop and realised I had sent the wrong report to a client the night before.
By the time I checked my email, the client had already replied.

They weren’t happy.

I immediately called them and apologised.
Luckily, they hadn’t read the financial section yet.

While I was correcting the document, my manager came into my office.
He asked if I had prepared the presentation for the morning meeting.

That’s when I remembered: I had prepared it… but I had saved it on my computer at home.

Part 1 — Specific Information

Answer without reading the script again.

  1. Why was the manager stressed?
  2. What mistake did the speaker make the night before?
  3. Why was the client less angry than expected?
  4. What was the final problem?
Answers:

Part 1

  1. He hadn’t answered his phone and had sent the wrong report
  2. He sent the wrong report
  3. They hadn’t read the financial section
  4. The presentation was at home

Part 2 — What Happened First?

Choose the earlier action.

  1. The client replied / He checked his email
  2. He arrived at work / The manager called him
  3. He fixed the document / The manager asked about the presentation
  4. He prepared the presentation / He remembered it
Answers
  1. The client replied
  2. The manager called him
  3. The manager asked about the presentation
  4. He prepared the presentation

Part 3 — Check the Timeline

Put the events in order (1–6):

  1.  The client replied
  2. He arrived at work
  3. He called the client
  4. He sent the wrong report
  5. The manager asked about the presentation
  6. He checked his email

Part 3

  1. He sent the wrong report
  2. The client replied
  3. He arrived at work
  4. He checked his email
  5. He called the client
  6. The manager asked about the presentation

Don’t forget to leave me a comment below to let me know if you enjoyed this activity and how you did :-)