presently

[ prez-uhnt-lee ]

adverb

1. in a little while; soon:

   They will be here presently.

   Synonyms: forthwith, shortly

   Antonyms: later

2. at the present time; now:

   He is presently out of the country.

3. Archaic. immediately.

presently

/ ˈprɛzəntlɪ /

adverb

1. in a short while; soon
2. at the moment
3. an archaic word for immediately

Usage Note

The two apparently contradictory meanings of presently, “in a little while, soon” and “at the present time, now,” are both old in the language. In the latter meaning presently dates back to the 15th century. It is currently in standard use in all varieties of speech and writing in both Great Britain and the United States. The sense “soon” arose gradually during the 16th century. Strangely, it is the older sense “now” that is sometimes objected to by usage guides. The two senses are rarely if ever confused in actual practice. Presently meaning “now” is most often used with the present tense ( The professor is presently on sabbatical leave ) and presently meaning “soon” often with the future tense ( The supervisor will be back presently ). The semantic development of presently parallels that of anon, which first had the meaning, now archaic, of “at once, immediately,” but later came to mean “soon.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of presently¹

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; present ¹, -ly

Synonym Study

See immediately

Example Sentences

But in filings this week, lawyers for the city told the court that although some officers had worked undercover in the past or might wish to do so in the future, “none of these more than 900 Doe Plaintiffs are presently true full-time ‘undercover officers.’”

From Los Angeles Times

"It’s presently unclear why it took so long for the alarm to sound," Dwyer said.

From BBC

Trump is not a “lying low” kind of guy, though, and his response to the hurricane situation in the South—Helene hit last month, and Milton is headed toward Florida presently—is the latest instance of his compulsion to center himself in the national news, to his own detriment.

From Slate

The strike, the first by the union since 1977, is presently affecting operations at 36 ports, according to ABC News.

From Salon

The Republican vice presidential nominee will appear as a special guest during the show even though Carlson is presently in hot water for welcoming a pro-Nazi Holocaust revisionist, Darryl Cooper, on his X show Monday.

From Salon

Related Words

• immediately
• soon