Time: from, since, for, during A from, since and for

1 from is normally used with to or till/until:

Most people work from nine to five. from can also be used of place: Where do you come from?

2 since is used for time, never for place, and means 'from that time to the time referred to'. It is often used with a present perfect or past perfect tense (see 185-8, 194).

He has been here since Monday, (from Monday till now)

He wondered where Ann was. He had not seen her since their quarrel. since can also be an adverb (see 37, 185-8):

He left school in 1983. I haven't seen him since. since can also be a conjunction of time:

He has worked for us ever since he left school. It is two years since I last saw Tom =

I last saw Tom two years ago/I haven't seen Tom for two years. (For since with other types of clause, see 338.)

3 for is used of a period of time: for six years, for two months, for ever:

Bake it for two hours.

He travelled in the desert for six months.

for + a period of time can be used with a present perfect tense or past perfect tense for an action which extends up to the time of speaking:

He has worked here for a year. (He began working here a year ago and still works here.)

for used in this way is replaceable by since with the point in time when the action began:

He has worked here since this time last year.

B during and for

during is used with known periods of time, i.e. periods known by name, such as Christmas, Easter or periods which have been already defined:

during the Middle Ages during 1941 during the summer (of that year) during his childhood

during my holidays

The action can either last the whole period or occur at some time within the period:

It rained all Monday but stopped raining during the night, (at some point of time)

He was ill for a week, and during that week he ate nothing. for (indicating purpose) may be used before known periods:

/ went there/I hired a car/I rented a house for my holidays/for the summer.

for has various other uses:

He asked for £5. I paid £1 for it.

I bought one for Tom. (See 88.) for can also be a conjunction and introduce a clause (see 330).

92 Time: to, till/until, after, afterwards (adverb)

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