[dehardheaded]

Hi everyone,

What does "since" mean in the following sentence?

"... The result of all these researches was a history of the province during the reign of the Dutch governors, which he published some years since."

Since (adv.)
...
2. Before now; ago
3. After some point in the past; at a subsequent time

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Excerpted from American Heritage Talking Dictionary
Copyright © 1997 The Learning Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

That's a bit perplexing! Can't both meanings be applied to the above sentence?

[susan53]

Whoops - see below.

[susan53]

This comes from Irving's "Rip Van Winkle" written in 1820. The language has changed a lot since then. At that time "since" could be used to mean "ago",. as your dictionary says. I don't think there's any other meaning intended here. Another example, dated 1862, quoted by the Oxford dictionary : He went out a little while since.

[dehardheaded]

Thanks Susan. That alarms me that I have picked up the wrong book for my reading practice.

[susan53]

I take it from that that you're a learner of English? Congratulations - I'd never have guessed from your original message. But, if your main aim in reading is language improvement (rather than an interest in literature, or just wanting to read a good story) I'd always suggest you choose contemporary works. Thrillers are good at an advanced level because they tend to contain a lot of dialogue and more colloquial language. That's how I keep my French going .... (actually, it's also a good excuse to read stuff like John Grisham and Robert Ludlum which I'd feel guilty about reading in English ....)

[dehardheaded]

Yes, English is my second language, and currently my focus is more on written/formal English. My aim is to further extend my vocabulary and broaden my familiarity with more complicated sentence styles. I am currently reading these:

1- Elster's "Verbal Advantage"
2- A (rather heretical) book named "Reason in Revolt - Dialectical philosophy ..." which I think has a fluent language, and is turning out to be a collection of the words I have memorized for GRE!
3- New York Times!

These are the best resources I could find.

[MattNickson]

thnx for that knowledgeable discussion .




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[hamburgenglish]

Um excuse me but "since" in that sentence does not mean "ago!"

The use of since means;

That several years (undefined) after "the reign of the Dutch governors" he published a historical research document.

Ago does not come into the question ..... sorry!

Rob