Prepositions of Time in English: BY, UNTIL, BY THE TIME, NO LATER THAN...

Do English prepositions confuse you? There are so many little words to talk about time, but which one do you use, and when? Watch this lesson to erase your confusion. In this lesson, I will teach you how to use “until“, “by the time“, “no later/earlier than“ and more. By the end of this lesson, you will understand the difference between these prepositions and phrases. Until then, sit back, relax, and learn. TRANSCRIPT Hi, everybody. Welcome back to . I’m Adam. In today’s video we’re going to look at the prepositions: “by“ and “until“. We’re going to look at the differences between them, and how to use them, and what specific meanings they each have. We’re also going to look at the expression: “by the time“, as another way of using “by“ or whatever situation, and this one: “no ________ than“. Now, the reason why I left this blank is because you can actually put quite a few words in there. We’re going to look specifically at: “no later than“ to replace “by“ and “until“, but for now I want you to also understand that there’s other uses for it, and I’ll give you some examples of those. Now, before I start I will say Emma did a very good lesson about “by“ and “until“. Mine is a little bit different because I’m going to show you some other situations where you will use one or the other. Okay? So we’re going to start by figuring out: What’s the difference between these two? So look at our example sentences. I’ll get to our little time map in a second. “I’ll be at the office until noon.“, “I’ll be at the office by noon.“ Now, first of all, let’s assume the average workday is about... Is from 9 until about 5 o’clock, but I have some... I have some meetings in the afternoon so I will have to leave the office. But if you want to meet with me, I’ll be there until noon. What does that mean? It means that I will arrive at the office at the usual time, 9 o’clock, and I will stay there. So my stay at the office will continue until noon. At noon I will leave. Okay? So this is when we’re using “until“. Now, before I get in... Into that again, let’s look at the second one. “I’ll be at the office by noon.“ So, here, we’re looking at somewhere in this time, but not later than noon I will arrive at the office. Okay? Now, what’s the key difference between these two? Well, one, something continues. An action starts, continues, and it ends at that time mentioned after “until“. So both of them have an end time. You could even say a deadline, but that’s for other uses. There’s an end time. And that end time is noon. Okay? Something will happen at noon. Now, in the case of “by“, it could happen before. In the case of “until“, only one thing will happen. But the key to remember: When we use “by“, we’re looking at a finite action. This arrive is a one-time thing. Right? It’ll... It can happen here, it could happen here, it could even happen here. With “until“ only here will I leave. Okay? Now, what’s the difference, another difference that we have to think about? Is not only the continuance of an action and the finite situation of an action; here, we’re looking at something ending. My time at the office will end. Here, something can end or start. So if you want to meet me, I’ll be in the office by noon, so you can meet me from noon until 5. So the start time, the earliest time you can meet me is noon. The latest time you can meet me is just before noon because I’m leaving at noon. Right? So that’s one thing to keep in mind. The... Basically the implied situation. Now: “I’ll be at the office by noon and I’ll stay until 5.“ You can use both of them in one sentence. Sometime in here I’ll arrive, and then from 12 till 5, I’ll be at the office. So, what’s the key? Now I hope you basically notice this. What’s the key difference in these two sentences, is it the preposition? Yes. Different prepositions, different meanings. But what I hope you realize is that the difference is in the verb “be“. Why? What does “be“ mean here, and what does “be“ mean here? “Be... I’ll be at the office until... Until noon“, means I will stay at the office until noon. So this situation will continue. Here, “be“ means arrive. “I will arrive at the office by noon.“ So, one point here in this time... Timeframe I guess you could call it, something will happen. Continued, finite. “Finite“ means it’s a one-time action and that’s it, it’s finished. So that’s a very important thing to remember with “by“. Okay? “By“, and we also think about: “at“, “on“, or “before“. So, “at“ for time. This is a little review of prepositions. “At 5 o’clock“, “on Friday“, “on day“, so: “At 5 o’clock or before.“, “At noon or before.“, “On Friday or before.“ Okay? “Until“... Now, we don’t use this preposition “to“, but something continues to the end time.