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After 3 months since approval/in 3 months since approval

English Language & Usage Asked on May 30, 2021

Context: I want to say that the info will be shown in 3 months since approval. So, the sentence should be: You’ll see the info in/after 3 months since approval.

I have 2 concerns here:

  1. is there a difference between "after" and "in"? I know that "after" is often used to describe past events. What about the future? Is one of the prepositions more preferred/used by native speakers?

  2. since approval – I know that "since" is usually used with dates (since 1945) and with points of time when we use verbs (since the registration began). Can I say "since approval" without making the sentence too complicated with "since the day your profile got approved."

One Answer

The main difficulty with your suggestions comes from your use of since.

Since = from a particular time in the past until a later time, or until now

Cambridge

Whereas

After = following in time, place, or order

Cambridge

{A} It is therefore inappropriate to use since to refer to a time in the future. Use after. “The info will be seen 3 months after approval.”

{B} If you say “will be seen in 3 months” it will be understood as “will be seen at the end of the 3 months that start now”.

{C} If you say “will be seen 3 months after approval” it means “at the end of the 3 months that start when approval is given”.

{D} If you say “will be seen in 3 months, after approval”, the comma is needed to introduce a phrase that qualifies “3 months”. The meaning is that it will be seen 3 months from now, and that approval is expected within that 3 months. There is also a hint that, if approval is not given, it will not be seen. If you omit the comma, “in” is not needed, and the sentence reverts to {A} above.

Answered by Anton on May 30, 2021

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