We use the word “since” to give a reason. It tells why some action was taken. “Since” and “because” are both used to give a reason, but “because” is used more often.
“Since” is used a lot when we want to focus more on the action or result instead of the reason. However, it does have the same basic meaning as “because”, so these two sentences below have the same meaning.
- She will not go to the party because she has to work.
- She will not go to the party since she has to work.
It is more common to use “since” at the beginning of a sentence.
- I don’t go to that store because it is so expensive.
- Since it is so expensive, I don’t go to that store.
Since + reason/cause, + action/result
- Since it is rainy, I will not go outside.
- Since he is not here, we cannot play the game.
- Since I was late, I got in trouble with my boss.
- Since she is nice, everybody likes her.
- Since the weather was nice, we went on a picnic.
- Since the show will be free, we will go.
- Since he has been working hard, he will get the promotion.
- Since this dress is too expensive, I will not buy it.
- Since he works all the time, he doesn’t have a girlfriend.
- Since the restaurant is closed, we need to go somewhere else.
- Since we got there early, we got good seats.
- Since young people visit this website a lot, it is a good place to advertise.
We can also switch the order of the sentence.
Action/Result + since + reason/cause
- She is not going since her ex-boyfriend is going to be there.
- We are tired since we have worked overtime every day this week.
- He didn’t come since he had something else to do.
- We thought you weren’t home since the lights were off.
- We will go since we have some free time.
- We don’t talk about politics since we always end up fighting if we do.
Bonus Tips and Points
1. We can use short answers when responding to questions. This is common in speaking. It is more common to use “because” this way, but it is possible to use “since”.
A) Why didn’t you come?
B) Since I was busy.
A) Why was the game canceled?
B) Since it was raining.
2. It is important to remember that we also use the word “since” to tell when an action started. We use “since” this way with the present perfect tense or present perfect continuous tense.
- I have lived in Korea since 2009.
- She has played the piano since last year.
- He has known her since high school.
- Mark and Tim have been talking since 5 pm.
- He has been working on this project since June.
We can also use a clause after the word “since”.
- I have loved her since I was a boy.
- She has played the violin since she was young.
- I have enjoyed playing videos games since I was a kid.
- He has been crying since he heard the news.
Real-World English Conversations
A) Are you leaving?
B) I am going to go home early since I am not feeling well.
A) Since you didn’t come to the meeting, I will tell you about it.
B) Thanks.
A) Since you weren’t able to join us for lunch, I brought you a sandwich.
B) Thanks. You are the best.
A) Since you are new to this city, I will show you around if you want.
B) That would be great. I’m free this weekend if you are.
Use these free English lessons to learn the most common sentence patterns in the English language. If you learn these sentences and questions, it will help you speak English well. Study the lessons thoroughly, practice making your own sentences, and come back to review often. If you do these three steps, your English speaking will improve quickly and you will be able to have natural English conversations.
English Sentence Patterns for Speaking Index
