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Thread: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

  1. #1
    CarloSsS's Avatar
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    Default It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    Is this construction correct?
    If I say: "It's been five years since I haven't driven a car." is it acceptable, meaning that I haven't driven a car for five years? Is it natural? I'm especially interested in AmE, but BrE or any other variation is fine too.
    I know the alternatives such as:
    • It's been since I last drove a car.
    • I last drove a car five years ago.
    • I haven't driven a car for five years.
    • etc...

  2. #2
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    It has been five years since you haven't driven a car? You've driven a car for five years solid?! I don't think so!
    "It's been five years since I have driven a car."
    All of your alternatives are fine as well, but you need to specify a period of time for the first one.

    [Not a teacher]
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  3. #3
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    [QUOTE=CarloSsS;860195] It's been five years since I haven't driven a car." No
    It's been five years since I last drove a car.
    I last drove a car five years ago. Yes
    I haven't driven a car for five years. Yes

    bhaisahab and CarloSsS like this.
    Context is important. Please provide enough for us to be able to deal effectively with your question.
    Your thread title should include all or part of the word/phrase being discussed.
    If you just want to know the meaning of a word, try OneLook Dictionary Search first.


  4. #4
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    It's been five years since I haven't driven a car.
    Does it even make sense? Would anybody say something like that? Could it mean the opposite of what it was supposed to mean, which is something like this: "I've been driving a car for five years".

  5. #5
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    Quote Originally Posted by CarloSsS View Post
    It's been five years since I haven't driven a car.
    Does it even make sense? Would anybody say something like that? Could it mean the opposite of what it was supposed to mean, which is something like this: "I've been driving a car for five years".
    That is exactly the point that Calis was making in post #2. It means the exact opposite of what you wanted to say.
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  6. #6
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    And would anybody use it in that meaning? Is it natural?

  7. #7
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    No, it isn't natural. There would be no reason for anyone to use it.
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  8. #8
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    Default Re: It's been ... since I/you/we/he/she/it haven't/hasn't ....

    As with almost any sentence, we can come up with a scenario for things to work.

    Like:
    A: Oh, gosh my feet hurt.
    B: You say that every day when you get home from work.
    A: That because they do hurt by the end of every day. I think it's been five years since my feet haven't hurt.
    CarloSsS and 5jj like this.
    I'm not a teacher, but I write for a living. Please don't ask me about 2nd conditionals, but I'm a safe bet for what reads well in (American) English.

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