by the time
idiom
: 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
Dylan was close to reaching his limit during last week’s disastrous game night, and clearly hadn’t gotten over it by the time this episode opens.
—
Caroline Framke, Vulture, 15 Dec. 2025
Oh, and by the time the closing credits roll, the aforementioned good-ship Canterbury has been comprehensively, unambiguously destroyed — along with most of its 50-strong crew — by forces unknown.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 14 Dec. 2025
Temperatures at Gillette Stadium were around 32 degrees and set to dip below 30 by the time their game is finished.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 14 Dec. 2025
The project experienced significant delays and cost overruns, with original estimates of 300 million Swedish kronor that eventually exceeded 500 million kronor by the time excavation began.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 4 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for by the time
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Caroline Framke, Vulture, 15 Dec. 2025
Oh, and by the time the closing credits roll, the aforementioned good-ship Canterbury has been comprehensively, unambiguously destroyed — along with most of its 50-strong crew — by forces unknown.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 14 Dec. 2025
Temperatures at Gillette Stadium were around 32 degrees and set to dip below 30 by the time their game is finished.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 14 Dec. 2025
The project experienced significant delays and cost overruns, with original estimates of 300 million Swedish kronor that eventually exceeded 500 million kronor by the time excavation began.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 4 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for by the time
Cite this Entry
“By the time.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/by%20the%20time. Accessed 21 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share