till

1 of 5

preposition

tᵊl,

təl,

ˈtil 

1

or 'til or less commonly til : until

2

chiefly Scotland : to

Usage of Till and 'Til

Many assume that till is an abbreviated form of until. In fact, it is a distinct word that existed in English at least a century before until, both as a preposition meaning "to" and as a conjunction meaning "until." It has seen continuous use in English since the 12th century and is a legitimate synonym of until. 'Til and 'till are much newer words, having appeared as variants of until and till in the 19th and 20th centuries, respectively. 'Till is often rejected, apparently because it seems to have added a superfluous L to the end of until. 'Til, for its part, is typically viewed as inappropriate in formal writing.

till

2 of 5

conjunction

tᵊl,

təl,

ˈtil 

variants or 'til or less commonly til

: until

till

3 of 5

verb

ˈtil 

tilled; tilling; tills

transitive verb

: to work by plowing, sowing, and raising crops : cultivate

till

4 of 5

noun (1)

ˈtil 

1

a

: a money drawer in a store or bank

also : cash register

b

: a box, drawer, or tray in a receptacle (such as a cabinet or chest) used especially for valuables

2

a

: the money contained in a till

b

: a supply of especially ready money

till

5 of 5

noun (2)

ˈtil 

: unstratified glacial drift consisting of clay, sand, gravel, and boulders intermingled

Did you know?

till, 'til, or 'till?

People often ask which is the correct synonym of until, till, ’til, or ’till?

Many assume that till is an abbreviated form of until. In fact, it is a distinct word that existed in English at least a century before until, both as a preposition meaning “to” and as a conjunction meaning “until.” It has seen continuous use in English since the 12th century and is a perfectly legitimate synonym of until.

’Til and ’till are much newer words, having appeared in the language only in the 19th and 20th centuries, respectively. Both are variant spellings of until and till. Writers of usage guides have roundly condemned ’till as a barbarism (apparently because it seems to have added a superfluous L to the end of until). ’Til, for its part, has been deemed inappropriate in formal writing.

In summary, until and till can be used freely and interchangeably, but you will probably want to avoid ’till and use ’til advisedly.

Synonyms of till

Verb

• cultivate
• farm
• harvest
• plant
• tend

Examples of till in a Sentence

Preposition

We won't finish till next week.

The event doesn't start till tomorrow.

Conjunction

They kept playing till it got dark.

He spun around till he was dizzy.

Verb

The farmers are tilling the soil.

farmers tilling the soil from sunup to sunset

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Prepare the soil through core aeration or tilling 4 to 6 inches deep. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 8 Oct. 2025

The rest was tilled into the ground. —Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025

Noun

After most of the employees scattered, police say, Rosado zip-tied the last remaining employee’s wrists together and took about $1,000 from the till of the business, according to court records and media reports. —Allison Gordon, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2025

These boulders get mixed in with much finer sand and clay to form what’s called a till. —Laura Poppick july 22, Literary Hub, 22 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Preposition

Middle English, from Old English til; akin to Old Norse til to, till, Old English til good

Verb

Middle English tilien, tillen, from Old English tilian; akin to Old English til good, suitable, Old High German zil goal

Noun (1)

Middle English tille locker, chest

Noun (2)

origin unknown

First Known Use

Preposition

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Conjunction

12th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Noun (2)

1762, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing till

• ain't over till it's over
• have/put one's hands in the till
• it ain't over until/till the fat lady sings
• no-till
• till/until all hours
• till/until the cows come home
• to/till/until the end of time
• up till
• wait until/till
• with one's hands in the till

Rhymes for till

• bill
• brill
• chill
• drill
• fil
• fill
• frill
• gill
• grill
• grille
• jill
• kill

Kids Definition

till

1 of 4 preposition or conjunction

variants or 'til also til

tᵊl,

təl,

(ˌ)til

: until

won't finish till next week

till

2 of 4 verb

ˈtil

: to work by plowing, sowing, and raising crops on or in

tilled the land

help till the soil

tillable

-ə-bəl

adjective

till

3 of 4 noun

ˈtil 

: a drawer for money

till

4 of 4 noun

ˈtil 

: a mixture of clay, sand, gravel, and boulders deposited by a glacier

Etymology

Preposition or conjunction

Old English til "until"

Verb

Old English tilian "to work (land) by plowing and raising crops"

Noun

origin unknown