Since vs For
A2 · ElementaryCommon Grammar Confusionssince 2015 vs. for ten years — a starting point vs. a length of time.
What you'll learn
- 'since' is followed by a POINT IN TIME — the moment something started (since 2015, since Monday, since I was a child)
- 'for' is followed by a DURATION — a length of time (for ten years, for two hours, for a while)
- Both words are commonly used with the present perfect to talk about something that started in the past and continues now
- A simple test: can you say 'X started at this moment'? Then use 'since'. Can you say 'X lasted this long'? Then use 'for'.
- Both 'since' and 'for' can also be used with other tenses, but this lesson focuses on their most common present-perfect use
A starting point vs. a length of time
'Since' and 'for' both often appear with the present perfect to describe something that began in the past and is still true now — but they answer different questions. 'Since' answers 'when did it start?' with a specific point in time. 'For' answers 'how long has it lasted?' with a duration.
'since' + a point in time
'Since' is followed by a specific moment when something began: a year, a date, a day of the week, an event, or a clause describing when something happened. The action or state has continued from that point up to now.
'for' + a duration
'For' is followed by a length of time — how long something has lasted, not when it started. This can be a specific duration or a vaguer one.
A quick test
If you can rephrase the time expression as 'starting at [this point]', use 'since'. If you can rephrase it as 'lasting [this long]', use 'for'. 2015 is a starting point, so 'since 2015'. Ten years is a length, so 'for ten years'.
Real English
Watch out
'Ten years' is a duration (a length of time), not a starting point, so it needs 'for', not 'since'.
'2015' is a specific point in time when the work started, so it needs 'since', not 'for'.
'Since' describing something that continues to now normally pairs with the present perfect, not the past simple.
Real life — Catching up with an old classmate
"Wow, I haven't seen you since graduation!"
"I know, it's been ages! I've been living in Berlin for about three years now."
"Really? Since when?"
"Since early 2022 — time flies."
Practice
Exercise 1 · Choose the correct word
Choose the correct word: I have lived here ___ 2015.
Exercise 2 · Choose the correct word
Choose the correct word: I have lived here ___ ten years.
Exercise 3 · Choose the correct word
Choose the correct word: She has worked there ___ last March.
Exercise 4 · Choose the correct word
Choose the correct word: They have been married ___ five years.
Exercise 5 · Choose the correct word
Choose the correct word: We haven't spoken ___ Monday.
Exercise 6 · Choose the correct answer
Which word is followed by a POINT IN TIME (a specific starting moment)?
Exercise 7 · Choose the correct answer
Which word is followed by a DURATION (a length of time)?
Exercise 8 · Choose the correct word
Choose the correct word: I haven't seen him ___ we graduated.
Exercise 9 · Complete with 'since' or 'for'
Complete with 'since' or 'for': I have known her ___ we were children.
Exercise 10 · Complete with 'since' or 'for'
Complete with 'since' or 'for': I have known her ___ twenty years.
Exercise 11 · Sort the time expressions into groups
0 / 6 sorted
Quick challenge
Five quick questions to check what stuck.
Question 1 / 5
Score: 0/0
Choose the correct word: I have studied English ___ I was ten.
You learned
- 'since' + a point in time (since 2015, since Monday).
- 'for' + a duration (for ten years, for a while).
- Both commonly pair with the present perfect for something that started in the past and continues now.
- Test: a starting point → since; a length of time → for.
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