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TOEIC Link Part 5 — since vs for: The Point-or-Duration Test for Time Blanks

Part 5 blanks since and for as if they were interchangeable time words, but they answer two different questions and the choice is fixed by what follows the blank, not by the tense. This guide replaces the "how long ago" guess with the point-versus-duration test, exposes the since-as-because trap that switches the word class entirely, drills the present-perfect pairing TOEIC relies on, and works through business-context distractor logic.

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The regional office has operated at a profit ____ 2019, despite two rounds of market disruption. The options offer for, since, during, and from, and most learners see a date, remember that both since and for go with the present perfect, and pick whichever reads smoothly. That approach misfires — the answer is since — because since and for are not two flavors of the same word. They answer two different questions, and TOEIC writes Part 5 time blanks precisely to test whether you know which question the sentence is asking. This guide gives you the test that decides every since/for blank in one look.

The rule that actually works: a point in time vs a length of time

Forget "how long ago" as your test. The real distinction is what kind of noun follows the blank:

  • since marks a starting point — a specific moment the situation began. What follows names when it started: since 2019, since Monday, since the merger, since March.
  • for marks a duration — how long the situation has lasted. What follows names a length: for three years, for six months, for a decade, for the entire quarter.

The test is mechanical: look at the noun after the blank and ask whether it names a point or a stretch. A calendar point (a year, a day, an event) takes since. A measured span (a number of units of time) takes for. In the opening item, 2019 is a specific starting point, not a length, so only since fits. Swap the object to five years and the answer flips to for with no other change. This is the same "the object decides, not the feel" discipline that governs in, on, and at with time expressions — the surrounding words look like free choices, but the noun locks the answer.

The trap: since can also mean "because"

The single most disruptive since distractor is not about time at all. since has a second job as a conjunction meaning "because," and when it plays that role it is followed by a full clause (subject + verb), not a time noun:

  • Since the supplier raised its rates, we renegotiated the contract. — Here since means "because," introduces a clause (the supplier raised its rates), and for could never replace it.
  • We have used this vendor since the rates were competitive. — Ambiguous on purpose: this can mean "from the time when" (temporal) or "because" (causal), and TOEIC exploits exactly this overlap.

The tell is what follows: a clause (subject + verb) means since is doing conjunction work; a bare noun means it is doing time-preposition work. for cannot introduce a reason clause the way causal since does, so an item whose blank is followed by a full clause is quietly ruling for out on structural grounds, not temporal ones. This word-class switch — the same spelling doing two grammatical jobs — is the trap that also lurks in during versus while, where one word takes a noun and its partner takes a clause.

The present-perfect pairing TOEIC relies on

Both since and for in their time sense normally live with the present perfect (has/have + past participle) or present perfect continuous, because both describe a situation that started in the past and continues to now:

  • The company has expanded steadily since 2015.
  • The company has expanded steadily for eight years.

This matters for elimination. The distractors during and from fail on structure: during takes a noun naming a period but does not pair with the present perfect the same way (during 2019 describes an event within that year, not a stretch up to now), and from needs a matching to to bound the span (from 2019 to 2022). When a Part 5 item has a present-perfect main verb and a single time noun after the blank, the real contest is almost always since versus for, and the noun type breaks the tie. This present-perfect anchoring is the same tense-alignment logic that decides conditional and subjunctive verb form items — the main clause's tense constrains what the blank can be.

The fixed patterns TOEIC reuses

Part 5 pulls since and for time blanks from a small, stable set of shapes. Learn the shapes and the guessing stops:

  • since + point — since last quarter, since the acquisition, since its founding, since April, since the policy took effect (clause naming a starting moment). The object always answers starting when?
  • for + duration — for the past three years, for over a decade, for the duration of the contract, for several months, for the entire fiscal year. The object always answers how long?
  • Causal since + clause — since demand has fallen, since the results were strong. The object is a reason, not a time.

One phrase deserves a flag: for the past three years looks like it contains a point (the past), but the head noun is years — a measured span — so it is a duration and takes for. Do not let a date-flavored modifier inside a duration phrase pull you toward since. Read the head noun, not the decoration.

Worked examples

1. Ms. Tanaka has led the procurement division ____ the company reorganized its supply chain in 2021. (A) for (B) since (C) during (D) until → The blank is followed by a full clause naming a starting event (the company reorganized...), so the temporal starting-point word is required: (B) since. for (A) cannot take a clause; during (C) needs a noun; until (D) reverses the direction.

2. The maintenance contract has been in force ____ nearly five years without a single renegotiation. (A) since (B) from (C) for (D) by → nearly five years is a measured duration, not a starting point, so the length word fits: (C) for. since (A) needs a point; from (B) needs a paired to.

3. ____ the audit revealed no discrepancies, the board approved the annual report without further review. (A) For (B) During (C) Since (D) While → The blank introduces a reason clause (the audit revealed no discrepancies) that explains the main action, so causal since fits: (C) Since. For (A) does not introduce reason clauses in modern usage; While (D) means "at the same time / whereas," not "because."

4. Shipping volumes have climbed ____ the third quarter, when the new fulfillment center came online. (A) for (B) since (C) for the (D) during → the third quarter here names the starting point (reinforced by the when clause pinning it to a moment), so the point word fits: (B) since. for (A) would need a duration noun, and the third quarter is being used as a moment, not a length.

The three-second decision procedure

On any since/for blank, run this order:

  1. What follows the blank? A full clause → causal since (or temporal since if it names a starting moment); a bare noun → go to step 2.
  2. Point or stretch? A calendar point or event → since. A measured length of time → for.
  3. Sanity-check the main verb: a present-perfect main clause confirms the time reading and eliminates during/from.

The elapsed time — that the situation has been going on for a while — is the same whichever word you pick, so it can never break the tie. Only the point-versus-duration test can. Anchor on the noun after the blank and every since/for item collapses to one answer. For the wider set of Part 5 pairs where two time-flavored words split on what follows them rather than on meaning, revisit the in, on, at time-preposition guide.