eleventh hour

noun

1. the last possible moment for doing something:

   to change plans at the eleventh hour.

eleventh hour

noun

1. 1. the latest possible time; last minute
   2. ( as modifier )

      an eleventh-hour decision

eleventh hour

1. The last minute: “The water bombers arrived at the eleventh hour — just in time to prevent the forest fire from engulfing the town.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of eleventh hour¹

First recorded in 1820–30

Idioms and Phrases

The latest possible time, as in We turned in our report at the eleventh hour . This term is thought to allude to the parable of the laborers (Matthew 20:1–16), in which those workers hired at the eleventh hour of a twelve-hour working day were paid the same amount as those who began in the first hour. [Early 1800s]

Example Sentences

The eleventh hour, the two-minute silence.

From BBC

That hasn't changed at the eleventh hour.

From Salon

Ominously, the court’s intervention signals to other states that they can commence purges at the eleventh hour, suppressing the vote through legal gamesmanship that Congress sought to ban.

From Slate

And now, at the eleventh hour, a shadowy group is barging in to muddy the waters even further.

From Slate

We are now at the eleventh hour.

From Slate