since/because/for/as

[joham]

It must have rained last night, ______ the street is wet.
A. since B. for C. because D. as
Do all four answers work well for the sentence? And how about the three for the following sentence?

______ the street is wet, it must have rained last night.
A. Since C. Because D. As

Thank you in advance.

 

[ihop]

***** NOT A TEACHER*******

Well, it looks like there is a comma splice in the sentence.

I would say..

It must have rained last night because the street is wet.

And

Since/As the street is wet it must have rained last night.

Since is American English, and As is British English, so both are OK.

 

[emsr2d2]

In BrE, we used to use "for" to mean "because" as well!

I am going to bed, for I am tired.

 

[joham]

In BrE, we used to use "for" to mean "because" as well!

I am going to bed, for I am tired.

How about 'as' and 'since' for the first sentence?

Thank you again.

 

[TheParser]

How about 'as' and 'since' for the first sentence?

Thank you again.

NOT A TEACHER

I can only offer ideas from some grammar books. You may then make your

own decision:

I left early, for I had a long drive.

The author says this "for" = "because" or "as."

He explains that "___ I had a long drive" is a subordinate

clause (which, I assume, modifies the verb "left").

The author points out that "for" is correct in a sentence such as:

Someone must have entered, for the lock on the door has been

broken. "For the lock on the door has been broken" gives

evidence for the truth of the first statement. Furthermore, it is

important to understand that "for" in this sentence is not a

subordinating conjunction but a coordinating conjunction. In other

words, you have two independent sentences. "For the lock on the door

has been broken" does not modify the verb "must have entered."

***

One excellent grammar gives this:

He could not have seen me, for I was not there.

The author says that "for" has the causal force approaching

as and since.

He points out that you may NOT use "as" or "since" in:

It is morning, for the birds are singing.

His explanation: "For" introduces an explanation -- not the idea

of cause.

 

[joham]

It is morning, for the birds are singing.

Do native speakers also use because/since/as here? Thank you in advance.


TheParser mentions the opinion of the author of A GRAMMAR OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (1931):
He points out that you may NOT use "as" or "since" in:
It is morning, for the birds are singing.

Then I found some other sentences but I still am not sure about the usage. I need your further help.

1. RANDOM HOUSE'S DICTIONARY OF AMERICAN USAGE(by the Evans,1957):

Since is also used to introduce a clause showing cause or reason, as in he must have taken it, since it isn’t here. This is standard, literary English. The conjunction because always indicates a cause, as in it isn’t here because he took it. But since, like the conjunction for, may also be used to indicate a result from which one may deduce the cause, as in the example given.

2. Otto Jespersen's ESSENTIALS OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR:
It was freezing as it only freezes in March.

3. Macmillan Dictionary:
George was obviously in a bad mood, because he didn't even say good morning.

 

[BobK]

***** NOT A TEACHER*******

Well, it looks like there is a comma splice in the sentence.

There isn't - there's a subordinate clause, which needs a subordinating conjunction.

I would say..

It must have rained last night because the street is wet.

And

Since/As the street is wet it must have rained last night.

Since is American English, and As is British English, so both are OK.
Not true. Both are OK (period)

There may be a preference for one in Am. E, but both are fine in Br. E.

As, since, and because all work both before and after the verb*; for works only after (and can sound a little formal/poetic/old-fashioned). They're interchangeable in some contexts - read lots to get a feel for them.

b

PS *"X as/since/because Y" = (that is, for each conjunction) "As/since/because Y, X"
PPS 'For' works in a formal context - like a story: 'Don't go in the wood, for bad things happen there'. But in a more everyday context it would look very odd: 'Don't eat at the Peking Duck, for MSG is used there' ;-)