meanwhile

noun
/ˈmiːnwaɪl/

Etymology

From Middle English menewhile, equivalent to mean (“intermediate”) + while. Adverb is by ellipsis from in the mean while, noun being conventionally written as one word after the adjective.

  1. inherited from menewhile

Definitions

  1. The time between two events.

    • In the meanwhile, the surveyors carried the line three miles, which was no contemptible day's work, considering how cruelly they were entangled with briers and gallbushes.
  2. During the time that something is happening, often specifically in a different place.

    • There was a party going on downstairs. Meanwhile, I was reading a book.
  3. During an intervening time

    During an intervening time; from now until a future time.

    • We’re going on holiday next month; meanwhile, keep working on the project.
    • “[…] I’m not ignoring you, I’m very sorry, I’ll talk to you soon. Meanwhile, get your tickets.”
  4. + 1 more definition
    1. In contrast to aspects previously mentioned.

      • Some songs on the album are beautiful. Meanwhile, others are quite forgettable.
      • When you are in the studio you don’t have anybody to feed off of, meanwhile when you are playing live you interact with people and you feel the energy in the room.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for meanwhile. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA