particle N3 common politewritten
〜以来 — since / ever since ~
〜以来 ・ いらい
Meaning
- since / ever since ~ — from a past starting point continuously up to the present
Key sentence
卒業以来、彼に会っていない。
I haven't seen him since graduation.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | N + 以来 | 入社以来 / あの日以来 |
| Verb (て-form) | V-て + 以来 | 日本に来て以来 |
Examples
引っ越して以来、一度も病気をしていない。
Ever since I moved, I haven't been sick even once.
あの事故以来、彼女は車に乗らない。
Since that accident, she won't ride in a car.
When you can't use it
- 以来 runs from the past up to now, so the main clause describes a state or repeated situation that has held the whole time — usually with a continuing or perfect nuance. It doesn't mark a single completed event right after the start; for 'after I graduated, I immediately…' use 〜たあとで or 〜てから.
Easily confused with
から から just marks a starting point ('from'); 以来 adds that the situation has continued unbroken from that past point to the present, and is more formal. 以後 / 以降 以後・以降 mark a boundary and look forward ('from this point on'), often about the future. 以来 looks back over a stretch that reaches the present ('ever since').
See 〜以来 in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜以来 the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar, A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar.