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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

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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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

An interim report in this case was released a month after the crash.

From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026

But by 2023, Bob Martin, who was then Gap’s interim CEO, said that Athleta could do better.

From MarketWatch • May 31, 2026

The "second season" of this inquiry has just wrapped up - with another interim report on the proceedings handed over to President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

“We expect this trend to continue in the second half of 2026, with cost increasing in fiscal Q3 and Q4,” interim CEO Bruce Broussard said on the call.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

Secretary of War Stanton arrives, makes the room next to Lincoln’s his headquarters, and takes charge, acting as interim president of the United States.

From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly

Related Words

• provisional