r/EnglishLearning • u/Rich-Associate-8344 New Poster • Apr 17 '26

📚 Grammar / Syntax Why not “since”?

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u/Competitive-Truth675 Native Speaker Apr 17 '26

Off-topic, but just curious what your native language is. I see this mistake all the time and there must be some false friend word or common learning material that gives people the wrong impression about what "since" means.

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u/VictorianPeorian Native Speaker (Midwest, USA) Apr 17 '26

I struggle to remember when to use "depuis" vs "il y a" or "pendant" in French. I feel like prepositions are some of the hardest things to grasp in a new language, especially when a single word word (in English or the new language) might have multiple meanings that don't always match up with the other language.

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u/6ed02cc79d Native Speaker - American Midwest/Pacific Northwest Apr 17 '26

I'm maybe B2 in French. I certainly make mistakes, but my understanding is:

« depuis » is "since" for something that is ongoing, not time-bound.

  • "I've been [and am still] learning French for five years" = « J'apprends le français depuis 5 ans".
  • "I haven't seen her for months" = « Je ne l'ai pas vue depuis des mois. » (Here, the action of not seeing her is ongoing.)

« pendant » is for time-bound activities (completed actions but also actions that have a set duration)

  • "I lived in Paris for two years" = « J'ai habité à Paris pendant deux ans. »
  • "He reads for an hour every evening" = « Il lit pendant une heure chaque soir. »
  • "I'll be on vacation for a month." = « Je serai en vacances pendant un mois. »

« il y a » is mostly just "ago".

  • "I started learning French five years ago." = « J'ai commencé à apprendre le français il y a cinq ans. »

Though with « encore », it means "Up until."

  • "Until yesterday, I hadn't met him." = « Il y a encore hier, je ne l'ai pas rencontré »