Pluperfect Tense in French (plus-que-parfait)

This compound tense describes an action completed prior to another action in the past:

Quand je suis arrivé tout le monde avait fini de manger (When I arrived everybody HAD FINISHED eating). 

The pluperfect tense is formed with the imperfect (imparfait) of the auxiliary verb avoir or être and the past participle.

The pluperfect tense is used the same as past perfect (had gone) in English.

j'avais parlé

tu avais parlé

il avait parlé

nous avions parlé

vous aviez palé

elles avaient parlé