Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - since

Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. You use since when you are mentioning a time or event in the past and indicating that a situation has continued from then until now. Jacques Arnold has been a member of parliament since 1987... She had a sort of breakdown some years ago, and since then she has been very shy... I’ve been here since the end of June. PREP • Since is also an adverb. When we first met, we had a row, and we have rowed frequently ever since... ADV: ADV with v • Since is also a conjunction. I’ve earned my own living since I was seven, doing all kinds of jobs. CONJ 2. You use since to mention a time or event in the past when you are describing an event or situation that has happened after that time. The percentage increase in reported crime in England and Wales this year is the highest since the war... He turned out to have more battles with the Congress than any president since Andrew Johnson. PREP • Since is also a conjunction. So much has changed in the sport since I was a teenager... Since I have become a mother, the sound of children’s voices has lost its charm. CONJ 3. When you are talking about an event or situation in the past, you use since to indicate that another event happened at some point later in time. About six thousand people were arrested, several hundred of whom have since been released... ADV: ADV with v 4. If you say that something has long since happened, you mean that it happened a long time ago. Even though her parents have long since died, she still talks about them in the present tense. PHRASE: PHR with v 5. You use since to introduce reasons or explanations. I’m forever on a diet, since I put on weight easily... = as CONJ