timely

English

Etymology

From Middle English timely, tymely, timliche, from Old English *tīmlīc (adj) and tīmlīċe (“in good time; timely; soon”, adverb), equivalent to time +‎ -ly. Cognate with Danish timelig, Swedish timlig, Icelandic tímalegur, tímanlegur.

Pronunciation

• enPR: tīmʹlē, IPA^(key): /ˈtaɪmli/

Adjective

timely (comparative timelier, superlative timeliest)

1. Done at the proper time or within the proper time limits; prompt.
2. Happening or appearing at the proper time.
   • (Can we date this quote by John Milton and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     The timely dew of sleep.

   • 2011 October 20, Jamie Lillywhite, “Tottenham 1 - 0 Rubin Kazan”, in BBC Sport‎^[1]:

     The athletic Walker, one of Tottenham's more effective attacking elements with his raids from right-back, made a timely intervention after Rose had been dispossessed and even Aaron Lennon was needed to provide an interception in the danger zone to foil another attempt by the Russians.

3. (obsolete) Keeping time or measure.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Spenser to this entry?)

Synonyms

• (done at the proper time): well-timed
• (happening or appearing at the proper time): opportune, seasonable; see also Thesaurus:timely

Antonyms

• (done at the proper time): badly timed, ill-timed, late.
• (happening or appearing at the proper time): inopportune, unseasonable; see also Thesaurus:untimely

Derived terms

Derived terms

• mistimely
• overtimely
• timelily

• timeliness
• timely-parted
• untimely

Translations

done at the proper time

• Afrikaans: tydig
• Catalan: oportú (ca)
• Finnish: oikea-aikainen
• German: zeitgerecht, fristgerecht (de), zur rechten Zeit f, rechtzeitig (de), zeitnah (de), zügig (de), rasch (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: καίριος (kaírios)

• Irish: ócáideach, tráthúil

  Old Irish: tráthach, tráthaigthech, tráthamail

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 適時の (てきじの, tekiji no), 渡りに舟の (わたりにふねの, watari ni fune nono)
• Latin: temporāneus
• Manx: traaoil
• Portuguese: oportuno (pt)
• Russian: своевре́менный (ru) m (svojevrémennyj)
• Spanish: oportuno (es)

happening or appearing at the proper time

• Catalan: oportú (ca)
• Dutch: tijdig (nl)
• Finnish: oikea-aikainen
• French: opportun (fr), au bon moment
• German: rechtzeitig (de), zeitgemäß (de), frühzeitig (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: καίριος (kaírios)

• Irish: ócáideach, tráthúil

  Old Irish: tráthach, tráthaigthech, tráthamail

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Latin: temporāneus
• Manx: traaoil
• Portuguese: oportuno (pt)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: пра̏вовремен

  Roman: prȁvovremen (sh)

• Spanish: oportuno (es)

Adverb

timely (comparative more timely, superlative most timely)

1. (archaic) In good time; early, quickly.
   • 2000, George RR Martin, A Storm of Swords, Bantam 2011, p. 587:

     ‘If I had been born more timely, he said, Rhaegar would have married me instead of Elia, and it would all have come out different.’

2. (obsolete) At the right time; seasonably.
   • 1646, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica:

     And this we shall more readily perform, if we timely survey our knowledge, impartially singling out those encroachments, which junior compliance and popular credulity hath admitted.

3. (law) In compliance with applicable time limits.
   • 1998, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, US v. Merino-Balderrama:

     On May 14, 1997, the jury convicted the defendant, who currently is serving a fifteen-month sentence. The defendant timely appeals.

   • 2003, United States Supreme Court, Clay v. United States:

     […] § 2255's one-year limitation period starts to run when the time for seeking such review expires. Under this rule, Clay's § 2255 petition was timely filed.

See also

• seasonably
• tidely

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Middle English

Adverb

timely

1. Alternative form of tymely