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Sami Kumar Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

When..did something for the first time or The first time.. did something

Hi,

I have been confused about this for a while now. I don't know what the difference between the following sentences is. Is there any difference?

1) When I first travelled to London, I lost my passport.
2) The first time I travelled to London, I lost my passport.
3) When I travelled to London for the first time, I lost my passport.

I wonder if I can replace 'first' with 'third'

1) Would it work with 'third'?
2) The third time I ate at that restaurant, I didn't have a good time at all.
3) When I ate at that restaurant for the third time, I didn't have a good time at all.

Thanks in advance Emotion: smile.
  

Top answer

3) When I travelled to London for the first time, I lost my passport. "the first time" and "for the first time" are practically the same. " It is a sequence of events.

— AlpheccaStars

  • 3) When I travelled to London for the first time, I lost my passport.
  • "the first time" and "for the first time" are practically the same.
  • " It is a sequence of events.
  • I made forty-nine trips to London without a hitch.
  • The fiftieth time I traveled to London, I lost my passport.
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5 Answers
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Sami Kumar2) The first time I travelled to London, I lost my passport.3) When I travelled to London for the first time, I lost my passport.
"the first time" and "for the first time" are practically the same. You can substitute any ordinal number to modify "time." It is a sequence of events.

I made forty-nine trips to London without a hitch.
The
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AlpheccaStars"the first time" and "for the first time" are practically the same. You can substitute any ordinal number to modify "time." It is a sequence of events.I made forty-nine trips to London without a hitch.The fiftieth time I traveled to London, I lost my passport.When I traveled to London for the fiftieth time, I lost my passport.
Thanks a ton for ans
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Sami KumarAlpheccaStarsThis does not mean exactly the same. It suggests your starting a new experience in London.Is that a subtle difference?
It suggests that you are still in London.
Sami Kumar1) He was playing football with his friends when I last saw him.
You may have seen him ten minutes ago. He might still be playing th
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AlpheccaStars Sami KumarAlpheccaStarsThis does not mean exactly the same. It suggests your starting a new experience in London.Is that a subtle difference?It suggests that you are still in London.Sami Kumar1) He was playing football with his friends when I last saw him.You may have seen him ten minutes ago. He might still be playing there.Sami Kumar2) He was playing footb
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Sami KumarIn conclusion, the former construction is used to talk about recent events, whilst the later one is used to talk about events that occurred in the distant past.
It's not that way 100% of the time. i.e. It is not a hard and fast rule.
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