Up To Now for Dummies

Up To Now:

So, imagine you are going somewhere - let's say you're traveling on a road trip. And as you drive along, you may use a GPS or a map to guide you, right? Well, think of "up to now" as a point on that map or GPS that shows you how far you have come on your journey. It's like a little marker that tells you where you are at this very moment in time.

Now, in everyday life, we don't always use maps or GPS devices to find our way. But we still have our own personal markers of progress or time. "Up to now" is a way of talking about everything that has happened or been true all the way up until this very moment.

Okay, let's break it down a bit more. Imagine you're watching an exciting baseball game with your friends, and you're keeping track of the score. As each inning passes by, you write down the runs and how each team is doing. When your friend asks you, "Hey, who's winning?" you might say, "Well, up to now, the Red Sox have scored 5 runs and the Yankees have scored 3 runs." See how you're talking about everything that has happened in the game so far? That's what "up to now" means - it's like taking a snapshot of everything that has come before this point.

Now, I want you to think about your own life. Have you ever accomplished something that you're really proud of? Maybe you finished a big project or learned something new. Well, when someone asks you, "What have you done so far?" you can say, "Up to now, I've finished that project and I've learned how to play the guitar." You're talking about everything you have accomplished or experienced in your life, right up until this very moment.

So, to sum it all up, "up to now" is like a marker on a map or a snapshot of everything that has happened or been true in a certain situation or in your whole life, right up until this very moment. It's a way of talking about progress, accomplishments, or just the things that have occurred in the past that lead you to where you are now.