Is the following a correct way to approach this?

Question

Depending on the context, I really struggled to see the distinction between which tense was appropriate to use with "depuis" and the negative.

(I'm sure my Kwiziq results reflect that!)

I've seen it described that The Present Tense is used when an action was taken in the past and is still the case now, and that Le Passé Composé is used to describe for how long something has not been going on.

That is to describe an action that was not taken in the past, and has still not been taken yet.

Is this an accurate way to decide which Tense is appropriate to use in negative sentences with depuis?

Aurélie Drouard · Accepted Answer

Bonjour Andy,

Yes, it's an accurate way to see it.
Here is an example for using Le Passé Composé:
"Il n'a pas mangé de viande depuis 4 ans." versus "Il ne mange pas de viande depuis 4 ans."
In the first case, we consider the action of "not eating" as finished in the past (i.e. He hasn't eaten meat for four years.) implying that he could be eating meat NOW, whereas the second sentence insists on the prolongation of the action of "not eating" all through the past up to the present moment (i.e.He hasn't been eating meat for 4 years.), he's STILL not eating meat.

I hope that's helpful!

Nancy Colby · Answer

Je suis bloquée à ce sujet!

Jason Kwan · Answer

Hi Aurelie

"Suzanne ne l'a pas vu depuis 2013" vs "Suzanne ne le voit pas depuis 2013" - do both mean "Suzanne hasn't seen him since 2013", but the second implies that she is now or soon going to see him?

Cheers

Jason