Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Even before the report’s release, signs of trouble at the homes had been stirring.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 8, 2023
“I should never have trusted you!” shouts Javadi, the foiled villain, who just seconds earlier, in a world that resembled “Homeland,” had been stirring his yogurt in the cleverest of ways.
From New York Times ● Mar. 19, 2017
Driving towards their beach hotel, John says it was as if "someone with a big wooden spoon had been stirring everything around".
From BBC ● Dec. 26, 2014
All along, something had been stirring within him.
From Inc ● Feb. 12, 2012
If the city of Lkossa had been stirring when Koffi first ventured through its streets, it had fully risen in the time she’d taken to sit with the old woman.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
