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This question came in the Dhaka University admission test 2008-09

  • I didn't eat since breakfast
  • I haven't eaten since breakfast

Q) No grammatical error occurs in

(a) I didn't eat since breakfast.

(b) I wasn't eating since breakfast.

(c) I hadn't been eating since breakfast.

(d) I haven't eaten since breakfast.

(b) and (c) sound off, so let's eliminate them. We are left with (a) and (d). I'm reasonably certain that (d) is correct. Question bank also says that the answer is (d). However, (a) also seems correct. According to this website, both (a) and (d) are grammatical. Are both (a) and (d) correct?

I request answers/comments that reflect common practices of American and British English.

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    The website you link to doesn't look like a reliable one.
    – Kate Bunting
    May 25, 2022 at 16:56

1 Answer 1

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It is not standard grammar to use since with a simple past. Standard grammar calls for the present perfect there. This is true in AmE and BrE.

I haven't eaten since breakfast. He hasn't seen her since yesterday.

Tests call for standard grammar. In any case, I'd avoid a simple past with since even though you might hear it here and there.

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