since

since

W1S1 [sıns] prep, conj, adv

[: Old English; Origin: siththan, from sith tham 'since that']

1.) [generally used with a perfect tense in the main clause]

from a particular time or event in the past until the present, or in that period of time

▪ We've been waiting here since two o'clock.

▪ I haven't played rugby since I left university.

▪ She left London ten years ago, and I haven't seen her since.

▪ The factory has been here since the 1970s.

▪ It was exactly five years since her father had died.

▪ Since the end of the war over five thousand prisoners have been released.

▪ He lost his job five years ago, but has since found other work.

▪ I left school in 1995, and since then I've lived in London.

ever since

(=all the time since)

▪ We've been friends ever since we were at school together.

▪ She's been terrified of the sound of aircraft ever since the crash.

▪ We came to the UK in 1974 and have lived here ever since.

2.) used to give the reason for something

▪ Since you are unable to answer, perhaps we should ask someone else.

3.) since when?

spoken used in questions to show that you are very surprised or angry

▪ Since when have you been interested in my feelings?

4.) long since

if something has long since happened, it happened a long time ago

▪ I've long since forgiven her for what she did.

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WORD CHOICE: since, for, during, over

Use since to say that something started at a point in time in the past, and is still continuing : He has been living in Leeds since 1998. | We've known about it since May.

Since is usually followed by a time expression ('last year', 'this morning', '4 o'clock' etc) or by the simple past tense. Use the present perfect or the past perfect in the other clause : I have loved movies since I first went to the cinema. |He had been seriously ill since Christmas.

!! Speakers of British English usually say it is a long time/two weeks etc since ..., and speakers of American English it has been a long time/two weeks etc since ..., but both uses are correct : It's weeks (BrE)/It's been weeks (AmE) since I saw Grandma.

Use for when you state the length of time that something has been happening : We have known each other for ten years (NOT since ten years). | I had been waiting for hours (NOT since hours). |I haven't seen him for ages (NOT since ages).

During and over are used when you state the period of time in which something happens or changes : During her first year at college, she had several boyfriends. | Over the last six months, crime has doubled.

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