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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

Relations between India and Bangladesh, strained under the interim administration that took power after Hasina's fall, have stabilised since Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman took office in February.

From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026

The board declared an interim dividend of 30 European cents, flat compared to a year earlier.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Jess Thirlby stepped down as head coach in March for family reasons, leaving assistant Anna Stembridge - head coach from 2011 to 2015 - in interim charge.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

The inquiry will resume in October, when its chair Baroness Lampard will decide whether to make interim recommendations.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

With Ed Lim’s help, Bebe had formally filed papers and had been granted visitation rights in the interim, once per week for two hours.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has struggled to consolidate control over the whole country and restore security since he came to power.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

Interim President Delcy Rodríguez has called the earthquakes the "most brutal natural catastrophe" in Venezuela's history.

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

Interim president Delcy Rodriguez visited the region on Thursday and declared it a disaster area.

From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026

Interim President Delcy Rodríguez assured U.S. officials and mining executives in March of security for foreign investors in the mineral-rich interior.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

They were en-gaged in producing something called an Interim Report, but what it was that they were reporting on he had never definitely found out.

From "1984" by George Orwell

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 team announced it will name interims to fill both positions for the final three games of the season “within short order.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 15, 2023

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

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

The interims were dark, and the side streets and alleys stygian.

From The Gray Dawn by White, Stewart Edward

Related Words

• provisional