since

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Since
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Lesson Vocabulary!
Term Definition
tense The name we give to two different forms of the verb.
Expresses the difference between the past, present, and
future time.

Today’s Class
1. Study ‘since’ as a way to describe time
She's been off work since Tuesday.
a) Compare ‘from’ and ‘since’
I’ve worked here since 2019. I worked there from 2019 to 2020.
a) Compare ‘for’ and ‘since’
I’ve worked here for a year.
2. Study ‘since’ as a way to link clauses
a) Compare ‘since’ and ‘because’
I’m working since/because I need money.
3
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a way to
describe time

Since
Measures a time that began in the past
1) a time that ends in the past
2) a time that still exists in the present
Used with the Perfect tenses = ‘to have’ + ‘past participle’
1) Mary had lived in Winnipeg since 1996. (past perfect)
2) Since my birthday I have felt really old. (present perfect)
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1996
past present
birthday
past present

Match the sentence and
the timeline
6
1. I have been studying since noon.
noon
A
past present
noon
B

the timeline
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1. I have been studying since noon. (A)
noon
A
past present
noon
B

the timeline
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1. They have been working on their
project since 11 am.
2. We haven’t seen our parents since
2017.
3. I had tried to reach her on the phone
since 3 pm.
4. My sister has been driving me crazy
since the day she was born!
5. Vincent had dated a few women
before marrying his wife.
11 am
C
3 pm
B
born
D
2017
past present
E
A
married

the timeline
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1. They have been working on their
project since 11 am. (C)
2. We haven’t seen our parents since
2017. (E)
3. I had tried to reach her on the phone
since 3 pm. (B)
4. My sister has been driving me crazy
since the day she was born! (D)
5. Vincent had dated a few women
before marrying his wife. (A)
11 am
C
3 pm
B
born
D
2017
past present
E
A
married

Since
Answers the question ‘How long?’ + Perfect tense
How long have you lived in Canada?
I have lived in Canada since 2018. / Since 2018.
Either the long or short answer is correct.
Which answer is more polite?
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Since
Answers the question ‘How long?’ + Perfect tense
How long have you lived in Canada?
I have lived in Canada since 2018. / Since 2018.
Either the long or short answer are correct.
Which answer is more polite?
The long answer is more polite because it is a full
sentence.
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Since
Write your own answers to these questions
1. How long have you been studying English?
2. How long have you worked at _(business name)__?
3. How long have you wanted to learn to ride a bike?
4. How long have you been waiting here?
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Since
Write your own answers to these questions
1. How long have you been studying English?
I have been studying English since 2010. / Since 2010.
2. How long have you worked at ___?
I’ve worked at English Online since 2019. / Since 2019
3. How long have you wanted to learn to ride a bike?
I’ve wanted to learn to ride a bike since I was twelve
years old. / Since I was twelve.
4. How long have you been waiting here?
I’ve been waiting here since 10 am. / Since 10 am.
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Since
Has the same meaning as ‘since then’.
What does ‘since then’ mean?
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Since
Has the same meaning as ‘since then’.
What does ‘since then’ mean?
Something happened within the time being
described. This is an idiom.
I met Mary in 1996. Since then we have been terrible
enemies.
If ‘since’ is at the end of the sentence then don’t
include ‘then’.
I met Mary in 1996. We have been terrible enemies
since.
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Since
Write the same sentence but change the position of
‘since’/’since then’.
1. I ate a bad apple once and haven’t eaten an
apple since.
3. She studied engineering in school but since then
she has worked as an artist.
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Since
Write the same sentence but change the position of
‘since’/’since then’.
1. I ate a bad apple once and haven’t eaten an
apple since.
2. I ate a bad apple once and since then I haven’t
eaten an apple.
3. She studied engineering in school but since then
she has worked as an artist.
4. She studied engineering in school but she has
worked as an artist since.
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From
Describes when something begins
1. From September classes will begin.
2. He was blind from birth.
Describes a period of time. From…to
3. I worked with English Online from July, 2019 to
March, 2020.
18https://pixabay.com/photos/books-pages-story-stories-notes-1245690/ shared under CC0
September
past present future
birth
March, 2020
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3

From
Can we use ‘from’ and ‘since’ in the same place?

From
Can we use ‘from’ and ‘since’ in the same place?
Sometimes because they have similar meanings, but
you need to pay attention to the tense.
He was blind from birth.
Incorrect: He was blind since birth. (simple past tense)
Wrong verb tense.
Correct: He has been blind since birth. (present
perfect)

Correct my mistake. What is the problem?
1. Summer lasts from mid-May since late-July.
2. I can leave since 9 am onwards.
3. I’ve been driving from midnight.
4. He’ll be working here since September 15th.
5. We will be ready since 9 pm.
6. Since 20 to 27 I was in university.
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Correct my mistake. What is the problem?
1. Summer lasts from mid-May since late-July.
2. I can leave since 9 am onwards.
3. I’ve been driving from midnight.
4. He’ll be working here since September 15th.
5. We will be ready since 9 pm.
6. Since 20 to 27 I was in university.
answers
1. Summer lasts from mid-May to late-July. Describes a period of time. From…to
2. I can leave from 9 am onwards. Describes when something begins
3. I’ve been driving since midnight. Present perfect, use ‘since’
4. He’ll be working here from September 15th. Describes when something begins
5. We will be ready from 9 pm. Future simple, use ‘from’
6. From 20 to 27 I was in university. Describes a period of time. From…to 22

For
‘For’ is used to show a period of time and can be used
with many tenses.
1. I have been developing this lesson for two weeks. (present perfect)
2. I had been developing this lesson for two weeks. (past perfect)
3. The lesson was developed for two weeks. (simple past)
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past present future
two weeks ago2
3 1

For
Can you exchange ‘for’ and ‘since’?
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For
Can you exchange ‘for’ and ‘since’?
You can make sentences with really similar meanings
but you can’t replace ‘for’ with ‘since.
‘Since’ only goes with the Perfect tenses, and ‘since’ has a starting point.
1. I've been travelling for three years. ‘Three years’ is a period of time.
2. I've been travelling since 2012. ‘2012’ is the starting point.
3. I’ve been travelling since three years ago. ‘ago’ indicates a starting
point.
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2 2012
past present future
1, 3

Why did I choose ‘since’ or ‘for’?
Think about the tense and whether there is a starting point or
a period of time.
1. He studied physics for 5 years before he got his degree.
2. They haven’t been any accidents in the workplace since the training last month.
3. They are training for 4 hours this month to decrease the number of accidents in
the workplace.
4. They will have lived with us for five years this spring.
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a period of time.
1. He studied physics for 5 years before he got his degree.
simple past, period of time = for
2. They haven’t been any accidents in the workplace since the training last month.
present perfect, starting point = since
3. They are training for 4 hours this month to decrease the number of accidents in
the workplace.
present continuous, period of time (4 hours this month) = for
4. They will have lived with us for five years this spring.
future perfect, period of time (five years).
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a period of time.
4. They will have lived (1) with us for five years this spring (2).
Future Perfect is used for the past in the future.
I used ‘for’ because the focus is on the period of time, ‘five years’, not
the starting point.
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past in
the future
past present future
1
2

a way to link
clauses

Since as a conjunction
When ‘since’ is a subordinating conjunction the rules are
different.
What is the function of a subordinating conjunction?
30

When ‘since’ is a subordinating conjunction the rules are
different.
What is the function of a subordinating conjunction?
To connect an independent clause and a dependent clause.
• ‘Since’ has the same meaning as ‘because’ but it is more
formal.
• You can use ‘since’ with tenses besides the Perfect tenses.
I rented an apartment since/because I needed a place to live.
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‘Because’ introduces a reason for something.
‘Because’ answers the question ‘why?’.
‘Because’ is a subordinating conjunction just like ‘since’.
Why did you eat the cheese?
1. I ate some cheese because I was hungry.
2. Because I was hungry I ate some cheese.
Why did you miss class?
3. I missed my class since/because I was sleeping.
4. Since/because I had been sleeping I missed my class.
32
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/artificial-intelligence-brain-think-4389372/ shared under CC0*Remember to put the conjunction at the beginning

‘Since’ and ‘because’
Can you exchange ‘because’ and ‘since’?
When ‘since’ is a subordinating conjunction
can it be used with tenses other than the
Perfect tenses?
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‘Since’ and ‘because’
Can you exchange ‘because’ and ‘since’?
Yes, you can.
When ‘since’ is a subordinating conjunction
can it be used with tenses other than the
Perfect tenses?
Yes, it can be used with other tenses.
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Name the tense.
Name a tense and write a sentence using ‘since’.
1. past simple
2. present simple
3. future going to
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Name the tense.
Name a tense and write a sentence using ‘since’.
1. past simple
I was tired since I hadn’t slept well.
2. present simple
They aren’t here since their car is broken.
3. future going to
She going to study tonight since she’s got a
test next week.
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Summary
1. Study ‘since’ as a way to describe time
She's been off work since Tuesday.
a) Compare ‘from’ and ‘since’
I’ve worked here since 2019. I worked there from 2019 to 2020.
a) Compare ‘for’ and ‘since’
I’ve worked here for a year.
2. Study ‘since’ as a way to link clauses
a) Compare ‘since’ and ‘because’
I’m working since/because I need money.
37

Questions?
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Thankyou!
Nastashya Wall
204-946-5140 ex. 201
nwall@myenglishonline.ca
livelearn.ca

since

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