sometime

adverb

some·time | \ˈsəm-ˌtīm

\

Definition of sometime

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 archaic : in the past : formerly

2 archaic : once in a while : occasionally

3 : at some time in the future I'll do it sometime

4 : at some not specified or definitely known point of time sometime last night

sometime

adjective

Definition of sometime (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : having been formerly : former, late

2 : being so occasionally or in only some respects a sometime father

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about sometime

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Examples of sometime in a Sentence

Adverb

We should get together sometime. It's likely to happen sometime soon. She will return from her trip sometime in December. A burglar broke in sometime during the night. The book was written sometime around the turn of the century.

Adjective

a sometime athlete who's gotten awfully fat

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb

Carlos Correa will not return to the Astros until sometime after the All-Star break. — Matt Young, Houston Chronicle, "Astros' Carlos Correa out until after All-Star break," 13 July 2018 The Glendale Fire Department first responded to a report of an explosion in the 1200 block of Viola Avenue sometime before 9 p.m. on Saturday, according to Anita Shandi, a spokeswoman for the department. — Andy Nguyen, latimes.com, "Explosion sends debris flying from Glendale apartment, displaces residents," 19 June 2018 The man was found near a parking lot sometime before 7:15 a.m. at 8405 Broadway, Houston Police Department officials said on Twitter. — Samantha Ketterer, Houston Chronicle, "Man found dead outside southeast Houston apartment complex," 12 June 2018 Seebach told the woman that sometime before December 2017, Rykhof had found his heroin and used all of it before fatally overdosing. — Nicholas Rondinone, courant.com, "Man Charged After Police Unearth Remains In Bloomfield Wetland," 8 June 2018 Senator Lindsey Graham, a sometime Trump ally, dryly noted that the threat of dirty pardons featured in Nixon’s impeachment proceedings. — Tessa Berenson, Time, "Donald Trump’s Campaign to Discredit the Russia Investigation May Be Working. It’s Also Damaging American Democracy," 7 June 2018 Whatever the truth is, Thomas Cromwell — who had earlier been a sometime-ally of Anne’s — now fully turned against the queen. — Anne Thériault, Longreads, "Queens of Infamy: Anne Boleyn," 25 May 2018 According to the sheriff's office, Dandrea and her new beau, Joseph Scott Mendoza, 34, showed up at the ex-boyfriend's place on South Upper Highland Road sometime before noon Sunday. — Shane Dixon Kavanaugh, OregonLive.com, "A boyfriend shot, an ex-boyfriend Tased, a woman on the lam in Clackamas County," 15 May 2018 Now that a petition has been filed, the CRA will force the Senate to have a vote on whether or not to overturn the FCC's recent regulatory decision sometime before June 12, though the vote is expected to happen as early as next week. — Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, "The Senate Will Vote on Net Neutrality," 9 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Fried, his sometime nemesis, had become assistant secretary of state for Europe and Eurasia and continued to push vocal American support of Western-leaning governments in former Soviet states, Georgia in particular. — Keith Gessen, New York Times, "The Quiet Americans Behind the U.S.-Russia Imbroglio," 8 May 2018 Kathy McKeon served as Jackie Kennedy's personal assistant (and sometime nanny) during a time of great change for the former first lady. — Caroline Hallemann, Town & Country, "Jackie Kennedy's Personal Assistant Remembers the Day Bobby Kennedy Died," 26 Apr. 2017 The injuries to the couple indicate that Charles Williams, 52, shot his wife and then himself sometime overnight Friday, police said. — Katie Park, Philly.com, "West Goshen couple dead in murder-suicide, police say," 4 June 2018 Arias was charged in the 2008 murder of her sometime lover Travis Alexander, who was found stabbed, shot and with his throat slit in the bathroom of his Mesa house. — Michael Kiefer, azcentral, "Arizona Appeals Court rules against Jodi Arias' request for court secrecy," 30 May 2018 Lawyers are once again debating the fate of Mumia Abu-Jamal, now 64, the former Black Panther and sometime radio reporter serving a life sentence for the 1981 shooting death of Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner. — Aubrey Nagle, Philly.com, "Comcast staffers report sexual harassment, Cosby jury explains verdict | Morning Newsletter," 1 May 2018 He's been a real estate agent, owned a liquor store, and invested in buying and developing property with his friend and sometime business partner Randy Schrimsher. — Lee Roop, AL.com, "Tommy Battle runs for governor saying he'll sell Alabama as 'a smart place'," 26 Apr. 2018 The principal of Forest Park Elementary School was told of the posting sometime Wednesday, then told a school resource officer and contacted Portland Public Schools security, said Dave Northfield, a school district spokesman. — Everton Bailey Jr., OregonLive.com, "Portland school 'slaughterhouse' label on Google leads to extra police presence," 21 Mar. 2018 The intense relationship between dear friends and sometime lovers Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West was not a scandal in their own households — the writers’ similarly free-thinking husbands were reportedly fine with it. — Jeremy D. Goodwin, BostonGlobe.com, "Subverting gender in Lyric Stage’s sly ‘Orlando’," 27 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sometime.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Learn More about sometime

Dictionary Entries near sometime

something or other

Statistics for sometime

Last Updated

10 Oct 2018

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for sometime

The first known use of sometime was in the 14th century

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More Definitions for sometime

sometime

adverb

English Language Learners Definition of sometime

(Entry 1 of 2)

: at an unspecified time in the future

: at an unspecified or unknown time in the past

sometime

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of sometime (Entry 2 of 2)

—used to say what someone or something was in the past

—used to say what someone sometimes does or is

See the full definition for sometime in the English Language Learners Dictionary

sometime

adverb

some·time | \ˈsəm-ˌtīm

\

Kids Definition of sometime

1 : at a future time I'll repay you sometime.

2 : at a time not known or not specified It disappeared sometime yesterday.

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