~ Meanwhile

Posted by Miss Evi     Category: Word of the day

meanwhile (adverb, noun)

Meanwhile as an adverb has two meanings: “during the time something else happens” and “at the same time.” As a noun, meanwhile means “the time something else happens.”

Example sentence

  • Susan went shopping on Saturday; meanwhile, her husband got a tattoo!
  • We’re moving to California next month, so meanwhile we’ll be busy packing.
  • The teacher will be gone for twenty minutes. In the meanwhile, please work on your essays.

Multi-words forms

“Meanwhile, back at the ranch” is a well-known phrase in US English. In the past it was used by narrators of American cowboy movies as a transition between scenes. Now it is mostly used ironically.Example: “My wife is on a business trip in Hawaii. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the kids are driving me crazy!”

Similar expressions

“In the meantime” is a synonym for meanwhile or “in the meanwhile.”

Origin

Meanwhile first appeared in Middle English 1300–1350.

(Source: http://daily.wordreference.com/w/ONfO8IUnkEehhPZharsZCg)

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.