Breakdown of zìcóng wǒ láidào zhè gè chéngshì yǐhòu, zhè shì wǒ dìyīcì zài zhèlǐ guò Chūnjié.
我wǒ
I
是shì
to be
这zhè
this
个gè
noun classifier
Questions & Answers about zìcóng wǒ láidào zhè gè chéngshì yǐhòu, zhè shì wǒ dìyīcì zài zhèlǐ guò Chūnjié.
Why do we need both 自从 and 以后? Don’t they both mean “since”?
In this pattern, 自从…以后 works like “ever since …” in English.
- 自从 marks the starting point in the past (“since the time when…”).
- 以后 emphasizes “after that point (up to now or beyond)”.
You can usually drop 以后 and just say:
- 自从我来到这个城市，这（是）我第一次在这里过春节。
This is still natural. Adding 以后 just makes the time span (“from then on”) a bit clearer and slightly more formal.
Can I use 从 instead of 自从 here?
Yes. 从 and 自从 often overlap when you mean “since (a time)”.
In this sentence you could say:
- 从我来到这个城市以后，这是我第一次在这里过春节。
Differences:
- 自从 is a bit more explicit and formal for “ever since (that time)”.
- 从 is more general (“from / since”) and used everywhere.
In everyday speech, both are fine here; the meaning is basically the same.
What’s the difference between 以后 and 以来 here? Could I say 自从我来到这个城市以来?