for the first time in years

[GoldfishLord]

Hood’s comedy will be shared with the community at a one-man show May 7. The retired Eastern Hancock educator, musician and magician is feeling well enough again to perform live on stage for the first time in years.

Source: https://www.greenfieldreporter.com/...r-returning-to-stage-after-kidney-transplant/

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Does "in" mean "after" or does it mean "during"?

 

[5jj]

Does "in" mean "after" or does it mean "during"?

It 'means' neither.

It is used for saying how long it is since something last happened

I haven’t laughed so much in years.
It was the president’s first public appearance in three months.

IN (adjective, adverb, preposition) American English definition and synonyms | Macmillan Dictionary

Definition of IN (adjective, adverb, preposition): inside container, room, building, vehicle, etc.; moving into a place or a space; train, bus, ...

www.macmillandictionary.com

 

[Rover_KE]

It means ‘for’ (I haven’t had a drink for/in years.)

The writer probably wanted to avoid having two ‘fors’ close together.

 

[jutfrank]

The writer probably wanted to avoid having two ‘fors’ close together.

But 'for' doesn't work in this context. I think it's because of the preceding phrase for the first/second/third time, which is followed by an in-phrase.

 

[Barque]

Does "in" mean "after" or does it mean "during"?

You can take it as its normal meaning--within, or a variation of within. Here, it means "within a [certain] period of time". You could also look at it as "for" but you might find "within" easier to follow.

He performed live for the first time. (He hasn't performed live before.)

This was his first live performance in 2023. (He has performed live prior to 2023. But in 2023, before this one, he hadn't performed live.)

This was his first live performance in two years. (He has performed live earlier, but two years have gone by since his last performance. This was his first performance since around April 2021.)

This was his first live performance in years. (He has performed live earlier, but some years have gone by since his last performance. His last performance was some years ago.)

... for the first time in years.

Do you understand what the phrase means as a whole? If you don't, that's what you should ask about, rather than just "in".