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[trail epoch]

Please be patient

Our volunteers look into many questions every day; sometimes it takes them a little while to answer.

Pro tip: you can rename the thread title with `.tr <thread name>`

Make it descriptive, including relevant context, but also to the point. This way you improve your chances of getting a more relevant and specific answer.

[surreal tinsel]

The pluperfect is the imparfait of the auxiliary verb + past participle

J'ai parlé (I spoke/I've spoken)
Je parlais (I was speaking)
J'avais parlé (I had spoken)

Je suis parti (I left/I've left)
Je partais (I was leaving)
J'étais parti (I had left)

so « ils n'étaient jamais revenus » is pluperfect and « ils ne sont jamais revenus » is perfect/passé composé

[vapid arch]

But I always read the pluperfect is used to dictacte 2 past actions. Lawless, kwiziq and other sites say it.
You can do it alone ?

Le plus-que-parfait corresponds to the past perfect tense in English. We use it to talk about an action or situation that took place before another past action.

[lethal sable]

It depends on the context

Both past actions don't need to be in the same sentence

[vapid arch]

Oh, that's my problem then. I thought they had to be.

[surreal tinsel]

Oh you're talking about the usage itself, sorry I saw 'imparfait + past participle' and though you had difficulties in parsing

[lethal sable]

tbh English pluperfect and French plus-que-parfait function in practically identical ways

[vapid arch]

I in 2 seperate sentences, do the sentences have to follow each other ?

[lethal sable]

No

[warm quarry]

it can just straight up be implied

depending on context ofc

[vapid arch]

Alrigty, so just always read the pluperfect as "Had (verb)" and assume its in conjunction?

I thought it had to be same sentence, and no 'implying' haha.

So in English its like "I had said goodbye." (Then left).