Work has been done vs Work had been done

Both phrases are correct, but they are used in different contexts. "Work has been done" is used to indicate that work was completed recently or is still relevant in the present. "Work had been done" is used to indicate that work was completed before a specific point in the past.

Last updated: March 22, 2024 • 2605 views

Work has been done

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate that work was completed recently or is still relevant in the present.

This phrase is used to talk about work that has been completed recently or work that is still relevant in the present. It indicates a connection between the past and the present.

Examples:

The report has been completed.
The dishes have been washed.
The project has been submitted.

Show examples from the web [+]

Much work has been done already on withholding taxes, and this report adds to the current interest in raising transparency of savings and transactions in such tax havens.
whereas valuable work has been done by the EU Peace Fund in Northern Ireland and the Border Counties;
Work has been done and a report is anticipated.
Listening to the Commissioner, it is clear that a lot of work has been done in relation to the involvement of speed and alcohol in causing road accidents.
I know that a lot of work has been done, in these exceptional circumstances, by the services and the Cabinet of the President.
A lot of work has been done by the Commission and by Parliament to enable the EU to better implement its development policies.
A great deal of work has been done on this matter, but there are nevertheless some real shortcomings in the justifications of this text.
Much work has been done, and I feel that agreement on the five dossiers we have voted on today could be easily reached, However without Civil Liability and without Flag States we will not be able to move any further forward.
Work has been done for quite a while on investigating replacement substances in order to meet the deadline laid down in the Protocol.
Work has been done in this Parliament in relation to the texts which the European Commission has been working on for over a year.
Work has been done in those other countries, so why are we not learning from them?
Work has been done in close collaboration with the Danish permanent representation and an expert from the Danish ministry of education on tuition fees, and this has enabled us to reach a compromise that is acceptable to all.
Some work has been done at the Ecofin Council.
In Ireland some commendable work has been done in this regard.
On this aspect, good work has been done in Parliament.
I understand considerable work has been done on laboratory-based blood tests for TB.
I think some very skilful work has been done.
Mr President, this work has been done by many people over many years.
I think that a surprisingly sound piece of work has been done.
Very substantial work has been done in this House by everyone concerned.

Alternatives:

work is done
work was done
work has been finished
work has been accomplished
work has been carried out

Work had been done

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate that work was completed before a specific point in the past.

This phrase is used to talk about work that was completed before a specific point in the past. It indicates a past action that happened before another past action.

Examples:

When I arrived, the work had been done.
By the time she called, the repairs had been completed.
Before the deadline, the project had been finished.

Show examples from the web [+]

Bree was surprised to find her work had been done for her.
This is true in the sense that Lisbon is too close to the presentation of the broad guidelines and the bulk of the work had been done previously.
It was getting closer and closer, that special moment, for which so much work had been done and so much hardship endured,
Mr Papadimoulis, the proposal was rejected at the end of the legislative process when work had already been done.
But you underestimated the prior work that had been done by some people.
What we have said is consistent with the House's decision to award the Sakharov Prize to Kofi Annan, for the work that had been done in the very field that we are dealing with here.
A constituent has complained to me that a major car company has refused to repair his car under warranty because it would only recognise work that had been done by a VAT-registered company which used the original manufacturer's spare parts.
It detailed work that had been done on a population of experimental rats that were first exposed to a carcinogen called aflatoxin, then fed a diet of casein, the main protein found in milk.
Some work has been done at the Ecofin Council.
In Ireland some commendable work has been done in this regard.
On this aspect, good work has been done in Parliament.
I understand considerable work has been done on laboratory-based blood tests for TB.
I think some very skilful work has been done.
Mr President, this work has been done by many people over many years.
I think that a surprisingly sound piece of work has been done.
Work has been done and a report is anticipated.
Very substantial work has been done in this House by everyone concerned.
This work has been done by Mr De Luca.
But part of the work has been done.
For us, not all the work has been done.

Alternatives:

work was done
work had been finished
work had been accomplished
work had been carried out

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Work has been done vs Work had been done