مدونة التربية و التعليم في الجزائر – دروس، فروض، نتائج امتحانات مدونة التربية والتعليم في الجزائر | تحضير الدروس، فروض واختبارات، نتائج البكالوريا وBEM، مسابقات التوظيف، والتوجيه المدرسي للطلاب وأولياء الأمور.
The Present Perfect tense is very common in English, but it can be tricky for Arabic speakers. Two important words that go with the Present Perfect are FOR and SINCE. They both talk about duration (time), but they are used differently. This lesson explains the difference clearly with rules, examples, and lots of practice.
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الكلمتان FOR و SINCE تستخدمان مع المضارع التام (Present Perfect) للحديث عن المدة الزمنية، لكن لكل منهما استخدام مختلف. في هذا الدرس سنشرح الفرق بوضوح مع القواعد والأمثلة والتمارين.
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Learning Objectives / الأهداف التعليمية
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- Understand the difference between FOR and SINCE / فهم الفرق بين for و since
- Use FOR with durations (periods of time) / استخدام for مع المدد الزمنية
- Use SINCE with starting points (specific times) / استخدام since مع نقاط البداية
- Form correct Present Perfect sentences with FOR and SINCE / تكوين جمل صحيحة بالمضارع التام مع for و since
- Answer questions with “How long…” / الإجابة على أسئلة How long
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Part 1: The Difference — الفرق بين For و Since
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| Preposition | Meaning | Used with | Arabic |
|---|---|---|---|
| FOR | Duration (how long) | A period of time: 2 years, 3 hours, 5 days, a long time | لمدة / منذ (مدة) |
| SINCE | Starting point (when it began) | A specific point in time: Monday, 2020, 5 o’clock, I was a child | منذ (نقطة بداية) |
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The simple rule / القاعدة البسيطة:
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- FOR = how long the action lasted (مدة الفعل) → I have lived here for five years.
- SINCE = when the action started (متى بدأ الفعل) → I have lived here since 2020.
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Part 2: Using FOR — استخدام For
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Use FOR when you want to say the duration of an action. It tells us how long something has been happening.
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| Example / مثال | Meaning / المعنى |
|---|---|
| I have studied English for three years. | درست الإنجليزية لمدة ثلاث سنوات |
| She has worked here for a long time. | هي تعمل هنا لمدة طويلة |
| They have been friends for ten years. | هم أصدقاء منذ عشر سنوات |
| He has slept for eight hours. | هو نام لمدة ثماني ساعات |
| We have waited for twenty minutes. | نحن انتظرنا لمدة عشرين دقيقة |
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Common time expressions with FOR / تعابير زمنية شائعة مع for:
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for two days, for a week, for three months, for five years, for a decade, for a century, for ages, for a while, for a long time, for an hour, for 10 minutes
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Part 3: Using SINCE — استخدام Since
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Use SINCE when you want to say the starting point of an action. It tells us when something began.
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| Example / مثال | Meaning / المعنى |
|---|---|
| I have studied English since 2023. | درست الإنجليزية منذ 2023 |
| She has worked here since Monday. | هي تعمل هنا منذ يوم الاثنين |
| They have been friends since primary school. | هم أصدقاء منذ المدرسة الابتدائية |
| He has lived in Algiers since 2019. | هو يعيش في الجزائر منذ 2019 |
| I have known her since I was six years old. | أعرفها منذ أن كان عمري ست سنوات |
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Common time expressions with SINCE / تعابير زمنية شائعة مع since:
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since 2020, since January, since Monday, since 3 o’clock, since morning, since yesterday, since I was a child, since we moved here, since the beginning
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Part 4: How Long…? Questions — أسئلة How Long
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To ask about duration, we use How long…? with the Present Perfect:
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| Question / السؤال | Answer with FOR / الإجابة بـ for | Answer with SINCE / الإجابة بـ since |
|---|---|---|
| How long have you studied English? | I have studied it for three years. | I have studied it since 2023. |
| How long has she lived here? | She has lived here for five years. | She has lived here since 2021. |
| How long have they been married? | They have been married for ten years. | They have been married since 2016. |
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Part 5: For vs Since — Comparison Table / جدول مقارنة
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| Category | FOR | SINCE |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning / المعنى | Duration (المدة) | Starting point (نقطة البداية) |
| Question / السؤال | How long? | How long? / Since when? |
| Followed by / يتبعه | A period of time (two hours, five days, a year) | A specific point (Monday, 2020, 3 o’clock, I was young) |
| Example / مثال | I have waited for two hours. | I have waited since 3 o’clock. |
| Arabic / بالعربية | لمدة / منذ + مدة | منذ + نقطة بداية |
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Part 6: Reading Passage — نص للقراءة
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My Grandfather’s Story
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My grandfather has lived in the same house for fifty years. He has lived there since 1976. He has worked as a doctor for forty years, but he has retired now. He has known my grandmother since they were teenagers. They have been married for forty-five years! My grandfather has had the same car for twenty years. He has not bought a new car since 2006. I have known my grandfather for my whole life, and I have loved him since I was a baby!
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Part 7: Practice Exercises / تمارين تطبيقية
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Exercise 1: Choose FOR or SINCE / اختر for أو since
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- I have known Ali ________ 2019.
- She has worked here ________ five years.
- They have been friends ________ primary school.
- He has studied English ________ two months.
- We have lived in this town ________ 2021.
- I have had this phone ________ three years.
- The baby has slept ________ 2 o’clock.
- She has waited ________ an hour.
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Exercise 2: Complete the sentences / أكمل الجمل
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- I have studied English since ________.
- She has lived in Algiers for ________.
- They have been friends since ________.
- He has had that car for ________.
- We have known each other since ________.
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Exercise 3: Correct the mistake / صحح الخطأ
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- I have lived here since two years. → ________
- She has worked here for 2020. → ________
- They have been friends for they were children. → ________
- He has studied English since three months. → ________
- We have waited for 5 o’clock. → ________
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Exercise 4: Answer the questions / أجب عن الأسئلة
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- How long have you studied English? (for / 4 years) → ________
- How long has your family lived here? (since / 2015) → ________
- How long have you known your best friend? (for / 6 years) → ________
- How long have you had your school bag? (since / September) → ________
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Answer Key / الإجابات النموذجية
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Exercise 1: 1. since, 2. for, 3. since, 4. for, 5. since, 6. for, 7. since, 8. for
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Exercise 2: (possible answers) 1. 2023 / last year / I was in primary school, 2. three years / a long time, 3. 2020 / kindergarten, 4. two years / a decade, 5. 2018 / we were young
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Exercise 3: 1. I have lived here for two years. 2. She has worked here since 2020. 3. They have been friends since they were children. 4. He has studied English for three months. 5. We have waited since 5 o’clock.
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Exercise 4: 1. I have studied English for 4 years. 2. My family has lived here since 2015. 3. I have known my best friend for 6 years. 4. I have had my school bag since September.
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Summary / ملخص الدرس
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| Use / الاستخدام | Structure / التركيب | Example / مثال |
|---|---|---|
| FOR + duration (مدة) | Present Perfect + for + time period | I have studied for two hours. |
| SINCE + starting point (نقطة بداية) | Present Perfect + since + specific time | I have studied since 8 o’clock. |
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Pronunciation Tips / نصائح النطق
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- For: In fast speech, ‘for’ is often pronounced /fər/ (not /fɔːr/). Example: “I’ve been here for a week” → /aɪv bɪn hɪr fər ə wiːk/
- Since: Pronounced /sɪns/ — the ‘s’ is soft, the ‘c’ is also an /s/ sound
- How long: Stress on ‘long’ — /haʊ ˈlɔːŋ/
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◆ Similar Lessons / دروس مشابهة
- The Simple Past Tense — English 4th Year Middle School
- Tag Questions (Question Tags) — Grammar, Examples, and Exercises — Eng
