I hadn'seen him since I was in Korea.

Question

Hi teachers!Today my question is 'since' in past perfect. Of course we use 'since' with present perfect as shown in #1 and #2. I. I haven't seen him since I was young. 2. I haven't seen him since 2010.I wonder if we can say like #3 and #4.3. I hadn't seen him since I was young (?) -&gt; Technically it sounds like I had not seen him before I was young. (??)4. I hadn't seen him since 2010. (?)-&gt; It is 2019 now and it doesn't spund logical to me. I always thank you teachers for giving and showing me right ways to learn English.

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

Michelle ChaI wonder if we can say ~~like~~ #3 and #4.
3. I hadn't seen him since I was young.
4. I hadn't seen him since 2010.

Yes. You can say those.

The past perfect requires a context in which a past event serves as an anchor point in time. Once this anchor is established, the past perfect measures time backwards from that anchor.

For 3, imagine that you're talking about meeting him in 2015.

It was at an airport waiting for a flight in May of 2015. Suddenly, this man comes up to me and says hello. What a surprise! It was my friend Stan. I hadn't seen him since I was young. ['I was young' was first. That's when I last saw Stan. Now I'm talking about something that happened later — in 2015, but that's still not present time (2019).]

For 4, the same reasoning applies. Maybe you're talking about suddenly seeing him in 2017 (the anchor point). "Now" is later than the anchor. "I was young" is earlier than the anchor.

Sometimes sentences with the past perfect seem strange because they occur without a story that is complex enough to place them in time. If you add the story, they make more sense.

CJ

I hadn'seen him since I was in Korea.

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