not until
idiom
: not before
Not until you finish your homework can you go outside.
When you finish your homework you can go outside, but not until then.
Examples of not until in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Nope, not until the clogging process is very advanced, reaching approximately 80% in an artery (only a 20% opening).
—
Bryant Stamford, Louisville Courier Journal, 25 Dec. 2025
Three minutes, maybe, and honestly, not until the very end.
—Mike Miller, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Dec. 2025
Only a single line from Hamlet gets spoken, and not until the book’s end.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 15 Dec. 2025
Remember when Nick [Saban] was hired at Alabama years ago, that was not until the Monday of the national championship game.
—Reice Shipley, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for not until
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Bryant Stamford, Louisville Courier Journal, 25 Dec. 2025
Three minutes, maybe, and honestly, not until the very end.
—Mike Miller, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Dec. 2025
Only a single line from Hamlet gets spoken, and not until the book’s end.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 15 Dec. 2025
Remember when Nick [Saban] was hired at Alabama years ago, that was not until the Monday of the national championship game.
—Reice Shipley, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for not until
Cite this Entry
“Not until.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/not%20until. Accessed 29 Dec. 2025.
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