How Long Should A Car Last

• #i

Hi

One of my students wrote How long ago have you bought your car? I idea that the sentence should be in the by simple (How long agone did you buy your car?) every bit the question is about a specific bespeak in the past. However, when I google "how long ago have" I go 4'150'00 hits (slightly less than one-half as many as when googling "how long ago did"). Here my questions:

1) Shold how long agone be followed by a past uncomplicated (did you buy) or a present perfect (have you bought)?
2) Could it exist that at that place is a divergence between the U.s. and the UK?

• #5

Hi tigerduck.
Consider this:
"How long ago" or "How many years ago" are similar to "when" - the answer: ii years agone, in 2010 in the by). We use "How long agone" to ask virtually a completely finished period of time. So we utilize the unproblematic by.
"How long" is similar to "since when" - the answer: for two years, since 2010 up to now. Michael Swan says: "We apply a present perfect to say how long a situation or action has continued up to now."

The OALD online gives this definition:

"agone early 14c., shortened grade of O.Due east. agan, agone "departed, passed away," pp. of an obsolete verb ago "to go forth," formed from a- "away" (possibly here used equally an intensive prefix) + gan "go" (see become). Ago remains a dialectal variant." Source: http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=agone

So, ​

"How many years ago" = "How many years passed abroad."

​

Concluding edited: January 23, 2012

• #vii

Hi eagleglide, you can't use b) How long agone has he left? in this context. You're asking when he left. That action happened at a betoken in the by. The "leaving" doesn't continue into the present.
"Agone" denotes "time by", "gone", then information technology refers to deportment or states that no longer apply at the time of speaking. Nowadays perfect generally applies to actions or states that continue up to the time of speaking.

We unremarkably use ago with the past simple. Nosotros don't employ information technology with the present perfect:
I received his letter iv days ago.
Non:

I have received his letter four days ago.

(Cambridge)

Source: https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/how-long-ago-past-simple-or-present-perfect.2339553/

Posted by: ayalasition.blogspot.com

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