Since when

[Eagertolearn]

To a native English speaker, is the following sentence correct:

"Since when have you been living there ?"

And does the use of "since when" here sound sarcastic ?

Thank you for your answer !

 

[emsr2d2]

Welcome to the forum. :hi:

Before we continue, please click on "Edit Post" and remove the space before the question marks and the exclamation mark. Those marks go directly after the letter that precedes them. (I believe that's the same in French.)
Remember to click "Save" when you've finished editing.

 

[GoesStation]

Those marks go directly after the letter that precedes them. (I believe that's the same in French.)

It isn't. French requires a non-breaking space before a colon, semicolon, question mark, or exclamation mark.

 

[emsr2d2]

OK, thanks GS. In that case, Eagertolearn, you have learnt something - in English, don't put a space before punctuation, except before a dash, opening quotation marks and an opening bracket.

 

[Rover_KE]

"Since when have you been living there?" is fine as an informal alternative to "How long have you been living there?"

It might sound sarcastic depending on the intonation, if you suspect that they don't actually live there.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

It doesn't seem sarcastic to me. It can be:

- aggressive: You're the team's captain? Since when?

- surprised: What? Since when is Pluto not a planet?

- snarky: Since when did she decide she can go home whenever she wants?

 

[Tdol]

I think it depends on the intonation- heavy intonation could suggest sarcastic disbelief to me.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I think it depends on the intonation- heavy intonation could suggest sarcastic disbelief to me.

You mean like this?:

- Since when were you crowned Queen of the Femme Fatales?

I'd call that sarcastic because the speaker obviously doesn't think the subject is queen of anything. That's sarcasm, right?: Pointedly saying the opposite of what you think is true.

 

[Tdol]

Yup- just like that. And since when did you think that being a Bernstein didn't make you an utter Charlie? :-D