It's been a long time...

[99bottles]

It's been a long time since I last cared about something/anything.

Generally, I know the difference between something and anything. But in this case, I'm not sure which to use.

 

[Tarheel]

I would use "anything" there.

 

[Tdol]

You could use either, but I wouldn't use something if I still didn't care.

 

[99bottles]

You could use either, but I wouldn't use something if I still didn't care.

Wait, is it clear that the meaning of the sentence in the OP is that I don't care about anything anymore?

 

[emsr2d2]

As a standalone sentence, I would say that's pretty clear. You could change the tense and use:

It's [been] a long time since I've cared about anything.

Bear in mind that the meaning would be different if the sentence continued after "anything" with a new clause that would probably start with "but".

It's [been] a long time since I've cared about anything but I've just been handed a tiny kitten that needs to be looked after until it can be adopted!

 

[99bottles]

As a standalone sentence, I would say that's pretty clear. You could change the tense and use:

It's [been] a long time since I've cared about anything.

Bear in mind that the meaning would be different if the sentence continued after "anything" with a new clause that would probably start with "but".

It's [been] a long time since I've cared about anything but I've just been handed a tiny kitten that needs to be looked after until it can be adopted!

Why did you change the tense? I've never heard about a 'since + present perfect' construction. Can you explain to me when is such a construction used?

 

[emsr2d2]

I offered an alternative wording. I wasn't suggesting that you need to change the original.

 

[99bottles]

I offered an alternative wording. I wasn't suggesting that you need to change the original.

Ok, but, since you just opened a new can of worms, care to explain in what cases the 'since+present perfect' construction is used?