How to Use then in a Sentence

then

1 of 2 adverb
  • Just then he walked in.
  • She lived in the Soviet Union, as it then was called.
  • Back then, he was living in New York.
  • And then there are the gantry cranes, which at present are 67 and 75 tall.
    John King, SFChronicle.com, 1 Oct. 2020
  • Watch the fish engulf the bug and turn or drop down then set the hook.
    Bill May, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 1 May 2021
  • Brush the squash halves with olive oil, then flip the squash cut-side down.
    Carrie Honaker, Southern Living, 21 Sep. 2023
  • And then there are the restaurants, cafes, and markets.
    BostonGlobe.com, 25 May 2021
  • And then this is the last Webb/Garfield Spider-Man movie.
    Good Housekeeping, 6 Apr. 2023
  • Ease along in first gear at 15 mph, then squeeze the throttle down to the floor and hang on.
    Rich Ceppos, Car and Driver, 2 July 2020
  • Slowly whisk in the olive oil, then add the salt and pepper flakes.
    Justin Phillips, SFChronicle.com, 13 July 2020
  • Have a look back at the iconic 1986 film's cast then and now.
    Georgia Slater, Peoplemag, 1 Dec. 2022
  • They then were brought to Italy and sold to clients, mostly in Asia.
    Trisha Thomas, Star Tribune, 18 June 2021
  • By then there were a lot of conflicts on the staff over the whole story.
    James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2023
  • And then, of course, the most important thing is a retinol.
    Glamour, 7 Apr. 2022
  • One minute there’s nothing, and then a song grows out of the seed of an idea.
    Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 18 June 2021
  • Since then, there have been many changes in Brazil and the film has survived….
    John Hopewell, Variety, 3 Dec. 2021
  • The gunman then managed to get back up and shoot and kill Rashid.
    Nick Perry, ajc, 16 Dec. 2021
  • So what were the big crowd-pleasers at the multiplex then?
    Kyle Smith, National Review, 7 Apr. 2021
  • When your pan is hot, press the dough, cook, then repeat.
    Lisa Zwirn, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Mar. 2021
  • Even then, the body has back-up defenses against the virus.
    Mike Stobbe, Fortune, 22 Sep. 2021
  • The court clearly hopes—and strongly hints—that the case will be moot by then.
    Garrett Epps, The Atlantic, 26 June 2017
  • And then there's that high demand for eggs, which spikes this time of year.
    Danielle Wiener-Bronner, CNN, 27 Dec. 2022
  • The work is Sisyphean: Move the pile from one spot this week, then go through the whole process again a week later.
    John Leland, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2023
  • The pitcher could be waiting for that thing to go down to one and then pick at one.
    The Enquirer, 10 Sep. 2022
  • Security then had to forcibly hold the door shut to keep the group out.
    Mike Mavredakis, Hartford Courant, 8 Sep. 2022
  • Peterson, who by then had made it to the corner of the lot, turns and runs north.
    oregonlive, 12 Dec. 2020
  • Since then, Suntok has scoured this beach dozens of times.
    Devon Bidal, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Feb. 2022
  • Graham, who was 18 then, shot and killed the 18-year-old victim.
    Garfield Hylton, Orlando Sentinel, 6 Apr. 2023
  • If streaming lava is like a runny nose, then explosions are the volcanic equivalent of a sneeze.
    Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
  • The droid then releases your package from its belly before ascending back into the sky.
    Jennifer Jolly, USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2024
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then

2 of 2 adjective
  • By then students may have a new high school to move into.
    Mará Rose Williams, kansascity, 16 Aug. 2017
  • Greg Allman came to one dinner with his then wife, Cher, who mistook a finger bowl for a drink and downed it.
    Charles Bethea, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023
  • Christie became the first among the other GOP 2016 contenders to endorse Trump and for years was a top outside adviser to the then-president.
    Paul Steinhauser, Fox News, 26 Mar. 2023
  • But when the company failed in the aftermath of the long recession that began in 2007, Mr. Jackson sought a reliable way to support his partner and their then-infant daughter.
    Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2022
  • Rebecca recruited close friends and family to be on the lookout for shoes in his then-size 17, and for larger sizes in anticipation of future growth.
    Susan Bromley, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2023
  • The descent itself began in 2003, when he was convicted of domestic abuse against his then-girlfriend, Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss.
    Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 3 Mar. 2023
  • But the government lost the marquee count that Kelly and his then-business manager successfully rigged his state child pornography trial in 2008.
    Michael Tarm, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2023
  • Sampaio began his political career while studying law at Lisbon University in the late 1950s, rising through the ranks of underground student movements which opposed the then dictatorship of António Salazar.
    Barry Hatton, ajc, 10 Sep. 2021
  • By then students may have a new high school to move into.
    Mará Rose Williams, kansascity, 16 Aug. 2017
  • Greg Allman came to one dinner with his then wife, Cher, who mistook a finger bowl for a drink and downed it.
    Charles Bethea, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023
  • Christie became the first among the other GOP 2016 contenders to endorse Trump and for years was a top outside adviser to the then-president.
    Paul Steinhauser, Fox News, 26 Mar. 2023
  • But when the company failed in the aftermath of the long recession that began in 2007, Mr. Jackson sought a reliable way to support his partner and their then-infant daughter.
    Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2022
  • Rebecca recruited close friends and family to be on the lookout for shoes in his then-size 17, and for larger sizes in anticipation of future growth.
    Susan Bromley, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2023
  • The descent itself began in 2003, when he was convicted of domestic abuse against his then-girlfriend, Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss.
    Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 3 Mar. 2023
  • But the government lost the marquee count that Kelly and his then-business manager successfully rigged his state child pornography trial in 2008.
    Michael Tarm, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2023
  • Sampaio began his political career while studying law at Lisbon University in the late 1950s, rising through the ranks of underground student movements which opposed the then dictatorship of António Salazar.
    Barry Hatton, ajc, 10 Sep. 2021
  • By then students may have a new high school to move into.
    Mará Rose Williams, kansascity, 16 Aug. 2017
  • Greg Allman came to one dinner with his then wife, Cher, who mistook a finger bowl for a drink and downed it.
    Charles Bethea, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023
  • Christie became the first among the other GOP 2016 contenders to endorse Trump and for years was a top outside adviser to the then-president.
    Paul Steinhauser, Fox News, 26 Mar. 2023
  • But when the company failed in the aftermath of the long recession that began in 2007, Mr. Jackson sought a reliable way to support his partner and their then-infant daughter.
    Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2022
  • Rebecca recruited close friends and family to be on the lookout for shoes in his then-size 17, and for larger sizes in anticipation of future growth.
    Susan Bromley, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2023
  • The descent itself began in 2003, when he was convicted of domestic abuse against his then-girlfriend, Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss.
    Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 3 Mar. 2023
  • But the government lost the marquee count that Kelly and his then-business manager successfully rigged his state child pornography trial in 2008.
    Michael Tarm, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2023
  • Sampaio began his political career while studying law at Lisbon University in the late 1950s, rising through the ranks of underground student movements which opposed the then dictatorship of António Salazar.
    Barry Hatton, ajc, 10 Sep. 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'then.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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