before long
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He would claim that he’d be passing by the accused’s cell and strike up a conversation, and before long the fellow prisoner would be unburdening himself.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Several weeks later, he called and before long he was staying with Elma and her late husband George whenever he was in Scotland.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
I didn’t keep up with the franchise—somewhere around GTA IV, I got married, and before long I was immersed in an even more chaotic open-worlder called parenting.
From Barron's ● May 21, 2026
That’s when all the fun started melting away, and before long, Meghan Trainor’s PR team issued an unforgettably batty press release for her Valentine’s Day-themed EP, where the word “bop” appeared twice in the copy.
From Salon ● May 10, 2026
The result is a kind of contagion of panic, and before long the men leading the zebras and llamas are struggling to maintain control.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
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.
