by the time

phrase

: at the time : when

I had lived in 12 different cities by the time I turned 18.

By the time she showed up, I was finished eating.

Examples of by the time in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To be counted, your mail-in ballot must reach your local election office or be placed into a drop box by the time polls close on Election Day. — Matt Schooley, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026

And may the extra hour afforded by the time change encourage all of us to curl up under a blanket with some tea, and replace our doomscrolling with reading. — Literary Hub, 2 Nov. 2026

The scholarship was one of the foundation’s first designed to capture outside gifts, and a link to it was in place by the time Tom’s memorial service took place May 16. — Melinda Moore, Chicago Tribune, 2 Nov. 2026

Prepare to be patient While most states and districts will be called by the time people go to bed on election night, some will not. — Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 1 Nov. 2026

Rhymes for by the time

• aforetime
• allozyme
• anytime
• christmastime
• cybercrime
• dinnertime
• guggenheim
• isozyme
• lysozyme
• maritime
• mesenchyme
• overtime