How to Use before long in a Sentence

before long

adverb
  • At some point before long, driverless trucks will hit the road.
    — Stephen Ritter, Forbes, 25 Jan. 2023
  • And before long, the story was less about the raid and more about him.
    — Jonathan Lemire, The Denver Post, 27 Oct. 2019
  • Someone lit a match, and before long, the whole thing was in flames.
    — Julia Kramer, Bon Appetit, 6 Feb. 2017
  • The waters are full of fish, and before long the boat’s hold is too.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 31 Aug. 2025
  • And before long, all of you could be vying for the same buyer.
    — Lew Sichelman | Andrews McMeel Syndication, courant.com, 4 Oct. 2019
  • Nangaa assured me that the war would be won before long.
    — Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
  • Some of his outs and doubles will turn into homers before long.
    — Owen Poindexter, New York Times, 27 May 2026
  • And before long, people came to trust and depend on that work.
    — New York Times, 22 Nov. 2021
  • Part of what will have fans further howling to see him here before long.
    — Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 25 Apr. 2025
  • And before long the lake-effect snow picked up to a near whiteout.
    — Wzzm, Detroit Free Press, 6 Jan. 2018
  • The coaches are up and out of their seats before long because this is a treat.
    — EW.com, 13 Oct. 2021
  • But Kirwan didn’t speak and, before long, the group broke up.
    — Colm Tóibín, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2025
  • Maybe there will be more firings and openings before long.
    — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 6 Jan. 2026
  • If all goes right, 30 teams have courts available again before long.
    — Tim Reynolds, The Denver Post, 6 May 2020
  • The amazing thing is, before long, that’s where the bullet will hit.
    — Richard Mann, Outdoor Life, 22 Aug. 2019
  • Core comes over to share his side, and before long, both men are shouting over each other.
    — Andy Benoit, SI.com, 1 Nov. 2017
  • The stage goes black before long, and when the lights come back up, the characters are black too.
    — Tony Adler, Chicago Reader, 1 Sep. 2017
  • Perhaps Blake Hunt will get a look before long.
    — Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 June 2026
  • However, before long sections of the crowd broke off and took to the streets.
    — Time Staff, Time, 31 Aug. 2019
  • The steadiness, as is almost always the case, paid off before long.
    — Sam Amick, New York Times, 21 May 2025
  • The flight took off, and before long, Catalina's mother fell asleep.
    — CNN, 23 Dec. 2022
  • But before long, all those small pieces create more visual clutter.
    — Angelika Pokovba, Martha Stewart, 3 Mar. 2026
  • The road wound left and right and turned to dirt, and before long we were surrounded by dozens of vendors.
    — Max Marshall, SI.com, 26 June 2019
  • And before long, their suspect, a 51-year-old Black man, bled to death.
    — al, 2 Oct. 2020
  • One week, the run game will take center stage, and before long, the passing game will be humming along.
    — cleveland, 4 Oct. 2020
  • Netflix’s hand may be forced about theatrical before long.
    — Brian Welk, IndieWire, 25 Aug. 2025
  • The buttons can feel a bit same-y, but you get used to the positioning before long.
    — New Atlas, 19 Apr. 2026
  • Fleming made a call and before long, Del flew over to Xavier for a visit.
    — Adam Baum, The Enquirer, 8 July 2020
  • After the big war, Life took him on its staff and before long sent him into a little one.
    — Harrison Smith, Darryl Levings and Katie Bernard, kansascity, 7 June 2018
  • Maybe that will turn up, too, before long, in Helsinki or Manila.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'before long.' 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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