“Had came” or “had come”: which is correct?
had come
The short answer
Had come is correct because come is the past participle of the irregular verb come. The past perfect tense is formed with had followed by the past participle.
Why people get it wrong
People often make this mistake because they confuse had came with the similar past perfect construction had come, mistakenly applying regular past tense rules to irregular verbs.
What kind of mistake it is
It is a grammatical error involving incorrect verb tense usage.
Examples with had come
- She had come to visit before it started raining.
- By the time the meeting began, everyone had come to an agreement.
- I didn’t realize she had already come and gone.
Quick check
She to visit before it started raining.
Had come is correct because come is the past participle of the irregular verb come. The past perfect tense is formed with had followed by the past participle.
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