timely
Americanadjective
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timelier,
comparative
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timeliest
superlative
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occurring at a suitable time; opportune; well-timed.
Our priority is to identify threats against the U.S. and provide accurate, timely warnings.
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occurring within an expected time frame; prompt.
To ensure timely delivery, orders with multiple products may ship separately.
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Archaic. early.
adverb
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seasonably; opportunely.
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Archaic. early or soon.
adjective
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at the right or an opportune or appropriate time
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an archaic word for early
Synonym Usage
See opportune.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of timely
First recorded before 1000; Middle English tim(e)liche, Old English tīmlīce (adverb); see time, -ly
Explanation
If something is finished quickly or on time, then it's been done in a timely manner. Homework, thank-you notes, and your taxes are just a few things that you should complete in a timely manner. Hear that clock ticking? That's the time limit for learning this word in a timely fashion. But the word timely isn't always about speed — being timely can also mean being well-timed or doing something at the most appropriate moment. If you're going for a job interview, it's important to make a timely arrival. And if you bump into friends just when they were wondering how you were doing, then you've made a timely appearance.
Vocabulary lists containing timely
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act III
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Vocabulary from "There Will Never Be an Age of Artificial Intimacy," by Sherry Turkle
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"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Off-site providers who are not paid timely may not accept new patients or continue to provide vital care and services.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
But listening back now, it’s hard not to marvel at how timeless this timely track feels.
From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026
He said any future plans that may impact global football should be presented to members "in a timely, transparent and meaningful manner".
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
Ten items had not been removed at least 20 days later, showing Telegram had breached Australia's online safety rules by failing to investigate and take "timely action", the court statement said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026
It was only the timely intervention of Abbot Mortimer that saved Redtooth’s life.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Yet A House of Dynamite could scarcely be timelier.
From Slate ● Mar. 13, 2026
The Education Department’s recent launch of a portal for universities’ foreign-funding disclosures was even timelier than officials likely realized.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 28, 2026
But unfortunately for the Fed, the timelier releases won’t come until after, Reid added.
From Barron's ● Nov. 24, 2025
CMS also argues the VRDC, which is already used by some external researchers, provides data in a timelier and more cost-effective manner.
From Science Magazine ● May 9, 2024
The beds i'th' East are soft, and thanks to you, That cal'd me timelier then my purpose hither: For I haue gained by't Caesar.
From Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare
“Payrolls tend to be a better guide to the economy’s true momentum than the timeliest estimates of GDP,” wrote Sam Tombs, chief U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics in a note Tuesday.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2025
The timeliest hit Sunday came from first baseman Carlos Santana, with whom the Mariners are 11-1 since acquiring him from the Royals.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 10, 2022
“Phase Six,” about a future pandemic, is his timeliest novel yet.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2021
But Bolshevism on Trial is the movie that the Jennings Daily Times-Record of Jennings, Louisiana famously proclaimed “the timeliest picture ever screened” on June 3, 1919!
From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2020
What man than Aias was more provident, Or who for timeliest action more approved?
From The Seven Plays in English Verse by Sophocles
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
