Use of ‘Since’ and ‘For’ in Tenses — Complete Rules
Hello friends. Today, through your favourite educational blog i.e. English Winglish (Sudan Sir Ki Paathshala), I am going to teach you how to use ‘Since’ and ‘For’ in Tenses, Spoken English and other places. I am 100% sure that after going through this blog, you will become confident and learn how to use and where to use ‘since’ and ‘for’.
for YouTube video on Since & For, click here
‘Since’ is used with a point of time in the past. It is also used with Perfect Tenses.
Exp: Tuesday, last night, 2020, 5:00 pm, 4 O’clock, yesterday, last year, 1st May, September, etc.
Since + point: A ‘point’ is a precise moment of time. Since means ‘from a point in the past until now’.
‘For’ is used with a period of time in the past, present or future.
For + period: a ‘period’ is a duration of time which means ‘from the beginning of the period to the end of the period’.
Exp: 10 minutes, 5 hours, ages, a long time, 10 days, 4 weeks, 7 months, 3 years, a day, few days, several months, some years, some time, etc.
‘Since’ and ‘For’ Rules/ Usage
1. She lived in California for 5 years and then moved to Japan.
2. Sheela has lived in Mumbai for a couple of years.
3. Kairav is going to stay in the USA for ten days and then he is going to London for a day.
4. They’ve lived in Japan since 2010.
5. We lived in Kerala for two years.
6. She has been away since last Saturday.
7. I have been waiting here since 6 o’clock.
8. John has been waiting for his friend for the last 20 minutes.
9. Mohan and Sonia have been learning English for two years.
10. Mark and Tina have been learning French since 2018.
11. She hasn’t been on holiday since last Jan.
12. Bharti has been saving her money for many years.
13. I haven’t eaten anything since morning.
14. You have been watching TV for 2 hours.
15. We have been living here for 2 yrs.
16. They study for 4 hours every day.
17. They have been studying for three hours since morning.
18. He has lived in Canada for a long time.
19. He has been living in Pune since Jan 2019.
20. I worked at that bank for ten years.
Correct/ Incorrect use of ‘Since’ and ‘For’
1. She was there all day. (correct)
2. She was there for all day. (incorrect)
3. I have known him for a long time. (Correct)
4. I know him for a long time. (Incorrect)
5. I have lived here for five years. (Correct)
6. I live here for five years. (Incorrect)
Other use of ‘Since’ and ‘For’
Both ‘since’ and ‘for’ also have other meanings, with no reference to time. Here are some examples:
1. This is for you.
2. Is this the train for London?
3. Since you ask, I’ll say yes.
4. Since he didn’t study, he didn’t pass the exam.
‘For’ can be used with all Tenses.
1. They exercise for two hours every day. (Present tense)
2. They are exercising for three hours today. (Present continuous)
3. He has lived in Japan for a long time. (Present perfect)
4. He has been living in Kerala for two months. (Present perfect continuous)
5. I worked at the service Headquarters for ten years. (Past tense)
6. He will be in hospital for at least a month. (Future tense)
Practice Exercises (Use ‘Since’ or ‘For’)
1. They have been living in Uttam Nagar ________ 1975.
2. He has been in prison ________ the last two years.
3. She has known about the fact ________ a long time.
4. Conditions have changed a lot ________ we were children.
5. My teacher Mr. Mehta has been very ill ________ the last month.
6. I haven’t eaten anything ________ 4 hours.
7. In fact, he is always very rude. We have been waiting for him ________ two hours.
8. I haven’t seen him for the last three years. It is because I haven’t been there ________ I left school.
9. I have been trying to repair this old car ________ hours.
10. One of my friends has been teaching in Canada ________ three years. I haven’t met him since last year.
11. I haven’t enjoyed myself ________ three weeks since I heard that my final exams are near.
12. I know that you have never seen a lion ________ you were born.
13. The police have been looking for him for two days ________ he escaped from the prison.
14. She hasn’t spoken to me even a word ________ the last meeting.
15. I haven’t called him ________ a week.
16. He has been the Principal of our school ________ 2001.
17. Mr. Vyas has been learning French________ two years.
18. He has been here ________ two days.
19. He has been working continuously________ he arrived.
20. I had lived in Gujarat ________ my childhood.
Note: Students, I hope you liked this blog. If you have any confusion/ difficulty/ doubt in this topic, you can kindly comment so that I can clear your doubt. if any. Thanks.
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