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• interim
  interim

  noun

  an intervening time; interval; meantime.
• Interim
  Interim

  noun

  any of three provisional arrangements made during the Reformation by the German emperor and Diet to regulate religious differences between Roman Catholics and Protestants

interim

American  

[in-ter-uhm] / ˈɪn tər əm /

noun

• interims
  plural

1. an intervening time; interval; meantime.

   School doesn't start till September, but he's taking a Spanish class in the interim.

2. a temporary or provisional arrangement; stopgap; makeshift.

   As an interim, her summer job was pretty good.

3. Church History. Interim, any of three provisional arrangements for the settlement of religious differences between German Protestants and Roman Catholics during the Reformation.

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adjective

1. for, during, belonging to, or connected with an intervening period of time; temporary; provisional.

   This is just an interim arrangement till office renovations are finished.

   She is the organization’s interim director while the board reviews applications for the role.

adverb

1. meanwhile.

interim ¹ British  

/ ˈɪntərɪm /

adjective

1. (prenominal) temporary, provisional, or intervening

   interim measures to deal with the emergency

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noun

1. the intervening time; the meantime (esp in the phrase in the interim )

adverb

1. rare meantime

Interim ² British  

/ ˈɪntərɪm /

noun

1. any of three provisional arrangements made during the Reformation by the German emperor and Diet to regulate religious differences between Roman Catholics and Protestants

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interim Idioms  

1. see in the interim.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• interims
  plural

Etymology

Origin of interim

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin: “in the meantime,” from inter “between” + -im, adverb suffix

Explanation

An interim is a period of time between one event and another. If a teacher leaves mid-year, there might be an interim teacher, one who takes over the class until a permanent replacement is hired. Interim is a Latin adverb meaning "in the meantime." The first part, inter means "between." Interim is the time between, and you can use it as a fancy way of referring to a time you squeeze something in. Maybe you get ice cream during the interim between school and piano lessons. This word is often used in official contexts — for example, after the CEO of a company steps down, an interim CEO might serve while a formal job search is conducted.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

interim Interim interims

BP said its interim chairman, Ian Tyler, would take on the role permanently.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

As the Angels inch toward first 100-loss season in franchise history, interim general manager John Mozeliak shares the next steps in the team’s rebuild.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

The choices he’s made in the interim period have not offered any course correction.

From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026

By Sunday, Rocha had requested another leave of absence, and the Sinaloa legislature installed an interim leader this week.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Nemur: “I’m not afraid of regression any more. I’ve checked and rechecked everything. An interim report will do no harm. I feel sure nothing can go wrong now.”

From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes

Interim leader Delcy Rodriguez assured the public Saturday that Venezuela retains control of its oil under a new agreement that allows the United States significant access to it.

From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026

Interim Chief Executive Officer Kevin McGurn said the company is making meaningful progress toward a proposed merger with the nuclear-fusion company TAE Technologies, which he described as the most important driver of long-term shareholder value.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Interim charges are lists of issues that the lieutenant governor and speaker give to their respective chamber’s committees to study during the period between legislative sessions.

From Salon ● Jul. 31, 2026

“Markets already move on Truth Social posts,” said Kevin McGurn, Interim Chief Executive Officer of TMTG, in the firm’s July 16 announcement of the service.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

He found Oppie wracked with self-doubt and struggling to draft another communique for the Interim Committee.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

In the Abramovich era, which stretched from July 2003 to May 2022, Chelsea won 18 major honours and two Community Shields, contesting 30 finals under 15 managers, including caretakers and interims.

From BBC ● Apr. 26, 2026

The move starts the team’s never-ending coaching carousel — now up to 10 coaches, including interims, in Snyder’s 24 seasons.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 2, 2022

And no more Trojan interims like Clay Helton.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2021

Since Piniella’s departure for the Rays after the 2002, the Mariners went through six managers and two interims – none receiving a contract extension.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 1, 2021

Whiles we have struck, By interims and conveying gusts we have heard The charges of our friends.

From Coriolanus by William Shakespeare

Related Words

• provisional