: the time before something happens or before a specified period ends
The new computers won't arrive until next week, but we can continue to use the old ones in the meantime.
: meanwhile entry 2
meantime he had been attentive to his other interests—
H. R. Warfel
H. R. Warfel
: time that is based on the motion of the theoretical mean sun
To find local mean time, determine how many degrees of longitude you are from your time-zone standard. (Find your longitude on a map.) Multiply this number by four to get your correction in minutes. If you are east of the standard longitude your correction is a positive number; if you are west it is negative. Apply the correction to standard time to get your local mean time.—Sky & Telescope
Sky & Telescopecalled also mean solar time
Examples of meantime in a Sentence
Adverb
He can come back to work when he's feeling better. Meantime, he should be resting as much as possible.
Recent Examples on the Web
Mark Faithfull, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2024
But an emergency cut in the meantime is unlikely: The Fed has taken such drastic action only a few times in its history — and only in the most dire of economic moments.
—Joel Mathis, theweek, 12 Aug. 2024
Tim Chan, Variety, 4 Oct. 2024
Top contenders for Super Bowl LIX, meantime, include the San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens and the Buffalo Bills.
—Tim Chan, VIBE.com, 12 Sep. 2024
Vanessa Ogle, Foreign Affairs, 12 Oct. 2015
In addition, the platform improves key security metrics—such as mean time to detection and mean time to response—which directly impacts a company's ability to avoid costly breaches and downtime.
—Tony Bradley, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for meantime 
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Noun
But red tape means that builders are unlikely to start on site for at least another year and joint venture landlords Ballymore and Hammerson, plus the local civic authorities are all supportive of Boxpark continuing to trade in the meantime.
—Mark Faithfull, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2024
But an emergency cut in the meantime is unlikely: The Fed has taken such drastic action only a few times in its history — and only in the most dire of economic moments.
—Joel Mathis, theweek, 12 Aug. 2024
Adverb
Verizon customers, meantime, will get exclusive tickets to select concerts and shows at Radio City, Beacon Theatre, The Theater at Madison Square Garden and The Chicago Theatre.
—Tim Chan, Variety, 4 Oct. 2024
Top contenders for Super Bowl LIX, meantime, include the San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens and the Buffalo Bills.
—Tim Chan, VIBE.com, 12 Sep. 2024
Noun
After several years of discussion among ministries, railway officials, legislators, and the public, Germany was finally ready to consider the nationwide implementation of a common mean time.
—Vanessa Ogle, Foreign Affairs, 12 Oct. 2015
In addition, the platform improves key security metrics—such as mean time to detection and mean time to response—which directly impacts a company's ability to avoid costly breaches and downtime.
—Tony Bradley, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for meantime
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Cite this Entry
“Meantime.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meantime. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
meantime
1 of 2 noun
mean·time
ˈmēn-ˌtīm 
: the time between two events
meantime
2 of 2 adverb
: in the meantime
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