At/from the outset





.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty{ margin-bottom:0;
}






up vote
0
down vote

favorite












Consider the sentence:




We've been friends at/from the outset.




Which preposition is used?






prepositions present-perfect







share|improve this question






















  • It depends on what you're trying to say. Are you still friends?
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago










  • @michael.hor257k Yes.
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago






  • 2




    Then use from. Otherwise you're implying you've been friends at the beginning, but stopped being friends at some later time.
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago












  • @michael.hor257k since the action shows no present relevance, shouldn't I change the tense? Say, We were friends at the outset?
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago








  • 1




    "We've been friends from the outset" is fine in both grammar and logic. "We've been friends at the outset" is nonsense in grammar and problematic in logic. It could be that that you wanted to say "We were friends at the outset" and is that so? Is that what you meant?
    – Robbie Goodwin
    2 days ago



















up vote
0
down vote

favorite












Consider the sentence:




We've been friends at/from the outset.




Which preposition is used?






prepositions present-perfect







share|improve this question






















  • It depends on what you're trying to say. Are you still friends?
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago










  • @michael.hor257k Yes.
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago






  • 2




    Then use from. Otherwise you're implying you've been friends at the beginning, but stopped being friends at some later time.
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago












  • @michael.hor257k since the action shows no present relevance, shouldn't I change the tense? Say, We were friends at the outset?
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago








  • 1




    "We've been friends from the outset" is fine in both grammar and logic. "We've been friends at the outset" is nonsense in grammar and problematic in logic. It could be that that you wanted to say "We were friends at the outset" and is that so? Is that what you meant?
    – Robbie Goodwin
    2 days ago















up vote
0
down vote

favorite









up vote
0
down vote

favorite











Consider the sentence:




We've been friends at/from the outset.




Which preposition is used?






prepositions present-perfect







share|improve this question













Consider the sentence:




We've been friends at/from the outset.




Which preposition is used?






prepositions present-perfect




prepositions present-perfect






share|improve this question













share|improve this question











share|improve this question




share|improve this question










asked 2 days ago









Alejandro

230112




230112












  • It depends on what you're trying to say. Are you still friends?
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago










  • @michael.hor257k Yes.
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago






  • 2




    Then use from. Otherwise you're implying you've been friends at the beginning, but stopped being friends at some later time.
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago












  • @michael.hor257k since the action shows no present relevance, shouldn't I change the tense? Say, We were friends at the outset?
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago








  • 1




    "We've been friends from the outset" is fine in both grammar and logic. "We've been friends at the outset" is nonsense in grammar and problematic in logic. It could be that that you wanted to say "We were friends at the outset" and is that so? Is that what you meant?
    – Robbie Goodwin
    2 days ago




















  • It depends on what you're trying to say. Are you still friends?
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago










  • @michael.hor257k Yes.
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago






  • 2




    Then use from. Otherwise you're implying you've been friends at the beginning, but stopped being friends at some later time.
    – michael.hor257k
    2 days ago












  • @michael.hor257k since the action shows no present relevance, shouldn't I change the tense? Say, We were friends at the outset?
    – Alejandro
    2 days ago








  • 1




    "We've been friends from the outset" is fine in both grammar and logic. "We've been friends at the outset" is nonsense in grammar and problematic in logic. It could be that that you wanted to say "We were friends at the outset" and is that so? Is that what you meant?
    – Robbie Goodwin
    2 days ago


















It depends on what you're trying to say. Are you still friends?
– michael.hor257k
2 days ago




It depends on what you're trying to say. Are you still friends?
– michael.hor257k
2 days ago












@michael.hor257k Yes.
– Alejandro
2 days ago




@michael.hor257k Yes.
– Alejandro
2 days ago




2




2




Then use from. Otherwise you're implying you've been friends at the beginning, but stopped being friends at some later time.
– michael.hor257k
2 days ago






Then use from. Otherwise you're implying you've been friends at the beginning, but stopped being friends at some later time.
– michael.hor257k
2 days ago














@michael.hor257k since the action shows no present relevance, shouldn't I change the tense? Say, We were friends at the outset?
– Alejandro
2 days ago






@michael.hor257k since the action shows no present relevance, shouldn't I change the tense? Say, We were friends at the outset?
– Alejandro
2 days ago






1




1




"We've been friends from the outset" is fine in both grammar and logic. "We've been friends at the outset" is nonsense in grammar and problematic in logic. It could be that that you wanted to say "We were friends at the outset" and is that so? Is that what you meant?
– Robbie Goodwin
2 days ago






"We've been friends from the outset" is fine in both grammar and logic. "We've been friends at the outset" is nonsense in grammar and problematic in logic. It could be that that you wanted to say "We were friends at the outset" and is that so? Is that what you meant?
– Robbie Goodwin
2 days ago












2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes

















up vote
0
down vote













We've been friends at/from the outset.



Interesting: TFD 2 idioms (Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary)



at the outset, also, from the outset.




at/from the beginning of something; at/from the start




The reference states that the noun outset is rarely heard
today except in these [2] phrases.



As in:




He wanted to explain his position from the outset.




and




At the outset the problem seemed simple, but then it became quite
complicated.




It appears you can use either.






share|improve this answer




























    up vote
    -1
    down vote













    Use since. We use the present perfect progressive tense (e.g. 'have been') to describe an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future. We use 'since' to discuss the duration of something that has continued from a definite past time and until now. I have been a socialist since I was a teenager. He has been sick since last Tuesday.



    Verb tenses



    Since






    share|improve this answer























    • I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
      – Michael Harvey
      2 days ago













    Your Answer








    StackExchange.ready(function() {
    var channelOptions = {
    tags: "".split(" "),
    id: "97"
    };
    initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

    StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
    // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
    if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
    StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
    createEditor();
    });
    }
    else {
    createEditor();
    }
    });

    function createEditor() {
    StackExchange.prepareEditor({
    heartbeatType: 'answer',
    convertImagesToLinks: false,
    noModals: true,
    showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
    reputationToPostImages: null,
    bindNavPrevention: true,
    postfix: "",
    imageUploader: {
    brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
    contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
    allowUrls: true
    },
    noCode: true, onDemand: true,
    discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
    ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
    });


    }
    });














     

    draft saved


    draft discarded


















    StackExchange.ready(
    function () {
    StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f473586%2fat-from-the-outset%23new-answer', 'question_page');
    }
    );

    Post as a guest















    Required, but never shown

























    2 Answers
    2






    active

    oldest

    votes








    2 Answers
    2






    active

    oldest

    votes









    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes








    up vote
    0
    down vote













    We've been friends at/from the outset.



    Interesting: TFD 2 idioms (Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary)



    at the outset, also, from the outset.




    at/from the beginning of something; at/from the start




    The reference states that the noun outset is rarely heard
    today except in these [2] phrases.



    As in:




    He wanted to explain his position from the outset.




    and




    At the outset the problem seemed simple, but then it became quite
    complicated.




    It appears you can use either.






    share|improve this answer

























      up vote
      0
      down vote













      We've been friends at/from the outset.



      Interesting: TFD 2 idioms (Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary)



      at the outset, also, from the outset.




      at/from the beginning of something; at/from the start




      The reference states that the noun outset is rarely heard
      today except in these [2] phrases.



      As in:




      He wanted to explain his position from the outset.




      and




      At the outset the problem seemed simple, but then it became quite
      complicated.




      It appears you can use either.






      share|improve this answer























        up vote
        0
        down vote










        up vote
        0
        down vote









        We've been friends at/from the outset.



        Interesting: TFD 2 idioms (Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary)



        at the outset, also, from the outset.




        at/from the beginning of something; at/from the start




        The reference states that the noun outset is rarely heard
        today except in these [2] phrases.



        As in:




        He wanted to explain his position from the outset.




        and




        At the outset the problem seemed simple, but then it became quite
        complicated.




        It appears you can use either.






        share|improve this answer












        We've been friends at/from the outset.



        Interesting: TFD 2 idioms (Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary)



        at the outset, also, from the outset.




        at/from the beginning of something; at/from the start




        The reference states that the noun outset is rarely heard
        today except in these [2] phrases.



        As in:




        He wanted to explain his position from the outset.




        and




        At the outset the problem seemed simple, but then it became quite
        complicated.




        It appears you can use either.







        share|improve this answer












        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer










        answered 2 days ago









        lbf

        16.4k21561




        16.4k21561
























            up vote
            -1
            down vote













            Use since. We use the present perfect progressive tense (e.g. 'have been') to describe an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future. We use 'since' to discuss the duration of something that has continued from a definite past time and until now. I have been a socialist since I was a teenager. He has been sick since last Tuesday.



            Verb tenses



            Since






            share|improve this answer























            • I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
              – Michael Harvey
              2 days ago

















            up vote
            -1
            down vote













            Use since. We use the present perfect progressive tense (e.g. 'have been') to describe an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future. We use 'since' to discuss the duration of something that has continued from a definite past time and until now. I have been a socialist since I was a teenager. He has been sick since last Tuesday.



            Verb tenses



            Since






            share|improve this answer























            • I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
              – Michael Harvey
              2 days ago















            up vote
            -1
            down vote










            up vote
            -1
            down vote









            Use since. We use the present perfect progressive tense (e.g. 'have been') to describe an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future. We use 'since' to discuss the duration of something that has continued from a definite past time and until now. I have been a socialist since I was a teenager. He has been sick since last Tuesday.



            Verb tenses



            Since






            share|improve this answer














            Use since. We use the present perfect progressive tense (e.g. 'have been') to describe an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future. We use 'since' to discuss the duration of something that has continued from a definite past time and until now. I have been a socialist since I was a teenager. He has been sick since last Tuesday.



            Verb tenses



            Since







            share|improve this answer














            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer








            edited 2 days ago

























            answered 2 days ago









            Michael Harvey

            5,08011019




            5,08011019












            • I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
              – Michael Harvey
              2 days ago




















            • I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
              – Michael Harvey
              2 days ago


















            I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
            – Michael Harvey
            2 days ago






            I thought my answer was sufficiently clear for this site. I'll vote to move it to ELL.
            – Michael Harvey
            2 days ago




















             

            draft saved


            draft discarded



















































             


            draft saved


            draft discarded














            StackExchange.ready(
            function () {
            StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f473586%2fat-from-the-outset%23new-answer', 'question_page');
            }
            );

            Post as a guest















            Required, but never shown





















































            Required, but never shown














            Required, but never shown












            Required, but never shown







            Required, but never shown

































            Required, but never shown














            Required, but never shown












            Required, but never shown







            Required, but never shown







            -

            Popular posts from this blog

            If I really need a card on my start hand, how many mulligans make sense? [duplicate]

            Image
            5 This question already has an answer here: How do you calculate the likelihood of drawing certain cards in your opening hand? 3 answers There is a funny modern deck where you play Treasure Hunt, but you really need to have it on the starting hand. How many mulligans should I take, if my deck contains 60 cards and contains 4 copies of Treasure Hunt? magic-the-gathering probability share | improve this question asked Nov 23 '18 at 12:12 dan dan 152 4
            Read more

            Alcedinidae

            Image
            Alcedinidae Martin-pêcheur à dos bleu ( Alcedo azurea ) Classification (COI) Règne Animalia Embranchement Chordata Sous-embr. Vertebrata Classe Aves Ordre Coraciiformes Famille Alcedinidae Rafinesque, 1815 Les Alcédinidés ou Alcedinidae forment une famille d'oiseaux plus connus sous les noms de martins-pêcheurs et martins-chasseurs. Sommaire 1 Description 2 Répartition et habitat 3 Systématique 3.1 Liste alphabétique des genres 3.2 Liste des espèces 4 Chez les Anciens : l'alcyon 4.1 Étymologie (Littré) 4.2 Oiseau « fabuleux » ? 5 Notes 6 Articles connexes 7 Liens externes 7.1 Bibliographie Description | Ce sont des oiseaux compacts de taille petite à moyenne (10 à 46 cm), au bec droit et long, en forme de poignard. Leurs pattes sont courtes, et ils portent un plumage aux couleurs vives. Répartition et habitat | Cosmopolites, ils fréquentent surtout
            Read more

            Can an atomic nucleus contain both particles and antiparticles? [duplicate]

            Image
            9 $begingroup$ This question already has an answer here: What happens if we put together a proton and an antineutron? 2 answers Is it theoretically possible to make a "deuterium" atom containing a proton and an antineutron in its nucleus? Would the strong nuclear force cause attraction between a proton and an antineutron? Would such a nucleus be stable, or would the proton somehow annihilate the antineutron when close enough? nuclear-physics antimatter share | cite | improve this question asked yesterday
            Read more