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Haddie Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

Since?

"It's been a long time since I felt / have felt this way."
Which is correct?
What tense follows since? Is there a rule?
  

Top answer

" It's better to say it that way. Perhaps someone can explain the rules behind it better than I can. The way that I see this, the last time you "felt that way" is a completed action in the past, and so the simple past is more appropriate.

— Xerxes

  • " It's better to say it that way.
  • Perhaps someone can explain the rules behind it better than I can.
  • The way that I see this, the last time you "felt that way" is a completed action in the past, and so the simple past is more appropriate.
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15 Answers
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In this case, you should say:
"It's been a long time since I felt this way."

It's better to say it that way. Perhaps someone can explain the rules behind it better than I can. The way that I see this, the last time you "felt that way" is a completed action in the past, and so the simple past is more appropriate.
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P.S. I should have added that my preference for the simple past ("felt") had much to do with the fact that you already have the present perfect ("it's been") in the sentence. Intuitively, it's just too weird for me to see "it has been a long time since I have felt this way".
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Thank you Xerxes.
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Could you help me with the following too:

1) It is three years since I began teaching.
2) It is three years since I have been teaching.
3) It is 500 days today since he was captured.
4) It is 500 days today since he has been in captivity.

Are all these correct?
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Haddie"It's been a long time since I felt / have felt this way."Which is correct?What tense follows since? Is there a rule?
The short answer is that 1) if you're talking about not having done something for a certain period of time, use the present perfect after since, and 2) if you're talking about what you did some time ago, but no
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HaddieCould you help me with the following too
1) It is three years since I began teaching. Correct. 'begin teaching' defines a point in time.
2) It is three years since I have been teaching. See my remarks below.
3) It is 500 days today since he was captured.
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Thank you so much CJ. That was the most helpful answer to this question I've ever been given.
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CJ I thought 2 could be taken to mean, "I have been teaching for three years and today is the day I started three years ago."
Similarly 4 would mean, "He has been captured for 500 days."
How would you rephrase these two to indicate a continied duration of time and the point in the past when this time began?
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Is it incorrect altogether to use since in sentences like these. Can this meaning only be expressed in for sentences?
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