How to use the words "since" and "from"

[dharanija35]

I would like to know when we should use the word "Since" and the word "from"

Dharanija

 

[MikeNewYork]

I would like to know when we should use the word "Since" and the word "from"

Dharanija

since (sĭns)

adv.

1. From then until now or between then and now: They left town and haven't been here since.
2. Before now; ago: a name long since forgotten.
3. After some point in the past; at a subsequent time: My friend has since married and moved to California.

prep.

1. Continuously from: They have been friends since childhood.
2. Intermittently from: She's been skiing since childhood.

conj.

1. During the period subsequent to the time when: He hasn't been home since he graduated.
2. Continuously from the time when: They have been friends ever since they were in grade school.
3. Inasmuch as; because: Since you're not interested, I won't tell you about it.

from (frŭm, frŏm; frəm when unstressed)

prep.

1. 1. Used to indicate a specified place or time as a starting point: walked home from the station; from six o'clock on. See Usage Note at escape, whence.
   2. Used to indicate a specified point as the first of two limits: from grades four to six.
2. Used to indicate a source, cause, agent, or instrument: a note from the teacher; taking a book from the shelf.
3. Used to indicate separation, removal, or exclusion: keep someone from making a mistake; liberation from bondage.
4. Used to indicate differentiation: know right from wrong.
5. Because of: faint from hunger.

idiom:

from away Chiefly Maine.

1. Not native to a state or locality.

[Middle English, from Old English fram, forward, from.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

 

[Humble]

Hi,
I may be wrong, but the problem for ESLs resides where they overlap:
since/from Monday, early morning, 2 o’clock etc. Are they sometimes interchangeable? :roll:
Tnx

 

[RonBee]

Hi,
I may be wrong, but the problem for ESLs resides where they overlap:
since/from Monday, early morning, 2 o’clock etc. Are they sometimes interchangeable? :roll:
Tnx

If you say since Monday then you mean from Monday till now. If you want to talk about a specific time period say from Monday till Friday (for example)>

~R

 

[Humble]

Thanks, RonBee,
So since is alone and from goes together with till?

 

[RonBee]

Thanks, RonBee,
So since is alone and from goes together with till?

Yep. We use since by itself, and from with till. Examples:

He's been working since dawn.
Farmers work from sunrise till sunset.
​

 

[Humble]

Thanks, RonBee.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Thanks, RonBee.

Now for more:

We also use "from" alone with a fixed point.

I am leaving two weeks from Monday.

 

[Humble]

Thanks, I appreciate it.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Thanks, I appreciate it.

You're welcome. :-D

 

[Seeker7]

Hello, everybody!

Could you please tell me whether "since" can be used together with past simple, especially when describing historical events?

For example, is it possible to say:

- "The telegraph office was in operation since June 1879"?

or

- "John Smith was appointed as a Chief Telegraph Office since Nov 1879"?

Thanks!

 

[RonBee]

- "The telegraph office was in operation since June 1879"?

Yes, that's plausible.

 

[RonBee]

- "John Smith was appointed as a Chief Telegraph Office since Nov 1879"?

No. Perhaps:

John Smith was appointed Chief Telegraph Officer in Nov. 1879.


or

John Smith has been Chief Telegraph Officer since Nov. 1879.


​

 

[donlouri]

hello
please i want to know in which tenses we use since
thank you very much

 

[Seeker7]

Thank you very much RonBee!

I didn't know that present perfect tense can be used to describe past state of the subject as in your second example:

"John Smith has been Chief Telegraph Officer since Nov. 1879"

Our English teacher tells us that present perfect cannot be used to express past action or state.

Could you give me a clue?

 

[RonBee]

Well, the present perfect is about the past and it is about the present. It says that such and such a thing has been going on in the past and it is still going on now. (For a definition of the present perfect, consult this site's grammar glossary.)

 

[bhaisahab]

Thank you very much RonBee!

I didn't know that present perfect tense can be used to describe past state of the subject as in your second example:

"John Smith has been Chief Telegraph Officer since Nov. 1879"

Our English teacher tells us that present perfect cannot be used to express past action or state.

Could you give me a clue?

If you use the present perfect here it implies that John Smith is still Chief Telegraph Officer. This is unlikely as it would make him at least 150 years old.;-)

 

[Seeker7]

Well, the present perfect is about the past and it is about the present. It says that such and such a thing has been going on in the past and it is still going on now. (For a definition of the present perfect, consult this site's grammar glossary.)

Yes, RonBee, this is exactly what my English teacher says about the use of present perfect. That's why I was puzzled over your second example

 

[Seeker7]

If you use the present perfect here it implies that John Smith is still Chief Telegraph Officer. This is unlikely as it would make him at least 150 years old.;-)

Absolutely! :up:

 

[bhaisahab]

- "The telegraph office was in operation since June 1879"

In BrE this is not correct. If the telegraph office is still in operation, you could use the present perfect here. If not you should use 'from' not 'since'.