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Teo Posted 20 years ago
Grammar

since, ago

0 According to one usage guide, 01b00since02b00 and 01b00ago02b00 cannot be used together. Never say 01i01b00since02b00 two/three/four months/years01b00 ago02b00.02i00 According to another grammar book, 01i00since a minute ago 02i00is correct. I am confused. Can anyone explain this usage? 0-
  

Top answer

0 01blockquote 01cite 10Teo12cite 10According to one usage guide, 11b 10since12b 10 and 11b 10ago12b 10 cannot be used together. 12i 10 According to another grammar book, 11i 10since a minute ago 12i 10is correct. I am confused.

— Milky

  • 0 01blockquote 01cite 10Teo12cite 10According to one usage guide, 11b 10since12b 10 and 11b 10ago12b 10 cannot be used together.
  • 12i 10 According to another grammar book, 11i 10since a minute ago 12i 10is correct.
  • I am confused.
  • 12blockquote 10Normally, "ago" refers to a completed time - it's in the past.
  • 02br 02br 00I came here a year ago.
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35 Answers
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0 01blockquote
01cite10Teo12cite10According to one usage guide, 11b10since12b10 and 11b10ago12b10 cannot be used together. Never say 11i11b10since12b10 two/three/four months/years11b10 ago12b10.12i10 According to another grammar book, 11i
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0Well, "since a minute ago" means "for one minute", like in "I've only been home for one minute" = "I got/came home only one minute ago". So you can use either according to what you want to express (the length of time you've been home/the moment you came home). But I'm sure it is used. The question is: is it grammatical? and there you'll need a native 050010id1
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0Hi,02br
02br
01font00According to one usage guide, 01b00since02b00 and 01b00ago02b00 cannot be used together. Never say 01i01b00since02b00 two/three/four months/years01b00 ago02b00.02i00 According to another grammar book, 01i00si
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0 01blockquote
01cite10Pieanne12cite10Well, "since a minute ago" means "for one minute", like in "I've only been home for one minute" = "I got/came home only one minute ago". So you can use either according to what you want to express (the length of time you've been home/the moment you came home). But I'm sure it is used. The question is: is it grammat
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0 01blockquote
01cite10Teo12cite10According to one usage guide, 11b10since12b10 and 11b10ago12b10 cannot be used together. Never say 11i11b10since12b10 two/three/four months/years11b10 ago12b10.12i10 According to another grammar book, 11i
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0Well now there is a dispute with a textbook company over this:02br
02br
00AGO AND SINCE can ONLY be combined like so:02br
02br
00INCORRECT: He has been in New York since three days ago.02br
02br
00CORRECT: He has been in New York since 01b01u00he came02u02b00 three days ago.0-
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01. He has lived in Taipei for three years. -- correct02br
002. He has lived in Taipei since three years ago. -- incorrect02br
003. He has lived in Taipei since he arrived there three years ago. -- correct02br
00[In this sentence, "since" is used to modify the clause "since he arrived02br
00there," not the phrase "three years ago."]02br
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0Personally, I think “Since” and “ago”, for all intensive purposes, are not supposed to be use in a single sentence. 02br
02br
02br
02br
00I have been watching TV here since 3 hours ago – will be considered incorrect in traditional English. However Teo had given an example where the two could be combined and used correctly. This goes to show that a simple ques
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0Hi,02br
02br
00I enjoyed reading your reply. I hope you won't think it too pedantic if I mention that the standard phrase 01font00is00 01font00for all intents and purposes02font00 and not 00for all intensive purposes. 02font00Confusion may have arisen from the fact that they so
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