Time is of the essence

Said when something must be done immediately: “The doctors need to operate right now; if they hope to save her, time is of the essence.”

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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.

For her MPs - and I've contacted almost all of them for my BBC Radio 5 Live show via text and WhatsApp over the last few days - time is of the essence, and for some, it is already running out.

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One ally of Mahmood told the BBC: "She knows that time is of the essence. She didn't take long to take big decisions at the Ministry of Justice, and she doesn't tend to hang about."

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It says the government's announcement is "vital and long-overdue", but time is of the essence.

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"However, time is of the essence and we need urgent clarification that it will be a priority to see this implemented in time for the next NI Assembly election in 2027. We cannot afford any further delay," she added.

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He added that “time is of the essence,” because farms and orchards are “coming right into our busiest time.”