FOR, AGO & SINCE (Grammar Check!)

Hey there, I'm Emma from mmmEnglish.

In this lesson,

you are going to master some important English prepositions.

Three little prepositions that often get mixed up by my

students.

For, since and ago.

They all help us to talk about time,

and although they are all often used to talk about past time,

they are each used in quite a specific way.

So we are going to cover off everything that you need to know about

for, since and ago right now.

And at the end you can check that you can use these English

prepositions accurately

with a little test that I've made for you.

Let's dive in.

Ago is a preposition of time.

We use it together with an amount of time,

an amount of time like

one minute, two hours, three weeks,

ten years, any amount of time.

And it describes how long before the present time that an

action or an event took place.

We often use it to answer the question about when.

When did Sarah move to Sydney?

She moved to Sydney ten years ago.

It's 2023 now.

This action took place ten years in the past

in 2013.

It happened ten years ago.

Ago always comes at the end of a sentence or clause

just like this.

I talked to him a few minutes ago.

He sent the letter three days ago.

Now,

do you notice what tense each of these sentences are in?

Exactly, the past simple.

We use ago in sentences that are in the simple past.

We use it to describe completed actions in the past and

when or how far back into the past that they occurred.

So let's look at a few more examples now.

I started learning English three months ago.

I ate lunch about an hour ago.

They left ten minutes ago.

So I want you to think about the last time that you

ate a sandwich

and finish this sentence in the comments for me.

The last time I ate a sandwich was about a week ago.

For is also used to express a length of time or a period of time,

but we use it before an amount of time to describe

how long an action or an event takes place.

How long has Sarah lived in Sydney?

She's lived in Sydney for ten years.

Remember,

it's 2023 now.

Sarah moved to Sydney ten years ago,

so I can use ago to say when she moved,

but if I want to emphasise how long

the length of time that she's lived there,

then I use for.

The amount of time that she has lived in Sydney

is ten years.

She's lived there for ten years.

We often use for with perfect tenses,

especially when we want to talk about something that

started in the past and continues up until the present.

They'd only been waiting for two minutes.

They've been friends for a long time.

So we can use for with a precise amount of time like

two minutes,

or with a time phrase that describes a less precise

amount of time,

like a long time.

So hit pause for a moment and write me a sentence

down in the comments.

I want you to look at the clothes that you are wearing

and write a sentence about

how long you've owned that piece of clothing.

This jumper is still new.

I've owned it for about a month.

Now

for simply describes an amount or a duration of time.

So while it is really common to use it in perfect tenses,

you can also use it in other tenses too.

We spoke for one minute.

We'll be away for seven days.

We go on holiday for two weeks every year.

Prepositions eight by eight is a step-by-step course

for intermediate to advance learners to go beyond

the basics and to learn eight different ways to use

eight prepositions in everyday spoken English.

You'll learn some advanced word patterns

that are going to take your English skills to the next level.

Plus every lesson includes an interactive speaking practice with

me using the English Imitation Technique.

Now, of course, I have a free lesson for you to try

so you can see what you think for yourself.

Just click the link in the description or follow that one up there

and enrol and try it out for yourself.

Now since is a preposition of time that is commonly used

with perfect tenses.

We use it before a time, a day,

or a date to describe the precise moment that

an action or a state began.

Like for, we use since to describe how long

something has been happening,

How long has Sarah lived in Sydney?

She's lived there

since 2013.

So while we can use both for and since to describe

how long an action or a state has been happening,

for focuses on the length of time or the duration.

And since focuses on the exact moment

that an action or a state began.

She's lived in Sydney since 2013.

2013 is the moment that she started living in Sydney.

If somebody asks you:

How long have you worked here?

You can answer that question with for or since.

It just depends on what you want to emphasise.

If you want to emphasise the duration or the precise moment

that that state started.

I've worked here for two months.

I've worked here since the start of June.

Since describes the precise moment and action began

and how long it has been in progress up until now or up until

a specific moment in time. And so for this reason,

we need to use it with a perfect verb tense.

So I'll show you some examples.

I've wanted a pony since I was a little girl.

He's been waiting since yesterday.

They've been watching telly since early in the morning.

So notice that you can also use since

with a general

time phrase as well.

Since the early morning.

Okay,

so let's test your skills and find out if you can use these

three important prepositions perfectly.

You'll see a question come up on screen just like this,

and your job is to choose the correct preposition:

for, since or ago.

In this case,

it needs to be ago. We're describing how far back in the past

an action happened.

A few days ago.

Are you ready?

Let's go.

He has been there

since 2020.

He has lived in Darwin

for two years already.

My brother went to Darwin

two years ago.

She's been working there

for three hours.

She started working in the garden three hours

ago.

She's been there

since 2:00 PM

I met her twenty years

ago.

I've known Brooke

since I was at uni.

I've known her for a long time.

So how did you go?

Tell me down in the comments if you aced that test.

And while you're down there,

write three sentences for me using

for, since and ago.

One in each sentence.

Tell me about the place that you live now,

the city or the town that you live in.

I first moved to Perth

eleven years ago.

I've been living here on and off for nine years.

I've lived in my current house since 2020.

So share your sentences down in the comments below

and I'll see you in the next lesson.

Thanks for watching.