soon

adverb

ˈsün 

especially New England ˈsu̇n

sooner; soonest

1

: without undue time lapse : before long

soon after sunrise

2

: in a prompt manner : speedily

as soon as possible

the sooner the better

no sooner said than done

3

: in agreement with one's choice or preference : willingly

I'd just as soon walk as drive

4

archaic : before the usual time

5

obsolete : at once : immediately

Usage of Safe

Both "drive safe" and "drive safely" are acceptable. Flat adverbs, as adverbs without -ly are called, are common in English; examples include soon in "see you soon" and fast in "time goes so fast." Adverbial safe functions in the same way these do.

Synonyms of soon

• shortly

Examples of soon in a Sentence

We will soon be making changes.

The soonest I can get there is tomorrow.

When is the soonest possible date of delivery?

The audience soon realized that it wasn't a stunt.

She found a job soon after graduation.

How soon can you finish the job?

The sooner you finish your homework, the sooner you can go outside and play.

I will let you know as soon as possible.

I'll get there as soon as I can.

Recent Examples on the Web

Their aim was to get bills out the door sooner and for the county to pay back districts that took a financial hit because of prior billing delays. — A.d. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 20 Sep. 2026

David Paul Morris / Bloomberg via Getty Images Sydney Von Arx, the CEO of Nightingale Collective, an organization focused on AI safety, asked why Google did not disclose the intrusions sooner. — Jared Perlo, NBC news, 19 Sep. 2026

With millions of ballots soon to flood mailboxes, people are paying closer attention. — Steve Bousquet, Sun Sentinel, 19 Sep. 2026

When his mother-in-law arrived at the home soon after, Flynn wailed and collapsed on the front porch, bodycam footage showed. — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English soone, from Old English sōna; akin to Old High German sān immediately

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 5

Phrases Containing soon

• a fool and his money are soon parted
• all too soon
• anytime soon
• as soon as
• as soon as the dust settles
• as soon/quickly as (humanly) possible
• none too soon
• not a moment too soon
• soon enough
• too soon
• we'll (soon) see about that
• would just as soon

Rhymes for soon

• boon
• brune
• coon
• croon
• dune
• goon
• hewn
• hoon
• june
• loon
• moon
• noon

Kids Definition

soon

adverb

ˈsün 

especially New England ˈsu̇n

1

: before long : without delay

soon after sunrise

2

: in a speedy way

as soon as possible

3

archaic : before the usual time

4

: by choice

would as soon do it now