Ayer había llovido y la calle estaba mojada.

Yesterday it had rained and the street was wet.

Breakdown of Ayer había llovido y la calle estaba mojada.

• estar: to be
• y: and
• ayer: yesterday
• la calle: the street

Questions & Answers about Ayer había llovido y la calle estaba mojada.

Why does the sentence use the pluperfect había llovido instead of the simple past llovió?

The pluperfect había llovido presents the rain as happening earlier than another past reference point (yesterday, at the time you’re describing the street). It sets up a cause that precedes a later past state: it had rained earlier, and as a result the street was wet.

• If you merely want to report the past event with no prior reference time, the default is the preterite: Ayer llovió.
• Your sentence is fine as a cause–result narrative, and it’s even more natural with an explicit link: Ayer había llovido, así que la calle estaba mojada.

Is Ayer ha llovido correct in Spain?

No in standard Peninsular Spanish. With finished-time expressions like ayer, you use the preterite: Ayer llovió. The present perfect ha llovido is used for time frames that include the present (e.g., Hoy ha llovido, Esta mañana ha llovido). In much of Latin America, the preterite is common even for hoy.

Could I say Ayer estaba lloviendo instead? What’s the difference?

Ayer estaba lloviendo means it was raining at that moment yesterday (an ongoing action). Había llovido says the rain had already happened before the moment you’re describing. So:

• Ayer estaba lloviendo y la calle estaba mojada = it was raining then.
• Ayer había llovido y la calle estaba mojada = it had rained earlier; now the street is wet.

Why not ?