till

till — preposition

1. up to a particular point in time, and not continuing beyond that moment; used wh

1.prepositionA2
Definition

up to a particular point in time, and not continuing beyond that moment; used when saying when something stops or starts.

Example

Soraya worked at the cafe till six in the evening.

till + noun phrase (time reference)

The summer sale at Erik's clothing store runs from Monday till Friday this week.

from … till … (duration range)

Common collocations
  • wait till
  • stay till
  • from ... till
  • keep till
  • not ... till
  • open till
  • work till
Synonyms
  • until

    more common in formal writing; 'till' and 'until' mean the same thing and can be used interchangeably

  • up to

    sometimes used with time references but less precise for end points ('up to Friday' can include Friday; 'till Friday' usually means before Friday)

Antonyms
  • after

    describes the time following a point, whereas 'till' describes the time leading up to it

  • since

    marks the starting point of a continuing situation, opposite of the end-point focus of 'till'

Grammar Patterns

till + noun phrase (time reference)

till + clause (subject + verb)

Usage Note

Also functions as a conjunction (till + subject + verb) and a preposition (till + noun phrase). 'Till' is slightly less formal than 'until', but both are very common in everyday speech and writing. In formal academic or legal texts, 'until' is preferred.

Common Mistakes

I will wait till the bus will arrive.
I will wait till the bus arrives.
After 'till' and 'until', use the present tense, not 'will', to refer to future time.

till — noun

till — verb

Word family

  • tillage
    nounB2
  • tilled
    adjectiveB2
  • tiller
    nounC1
  • untilled
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: preposition/1

'Till' and 'until' are the closest pair — they mean exactly the same thing and are interchangeable in all contexts. 'Till' is slightly more common in British everyday speech, while 'until' is preferred in formal writing, academic texts, and legal documents. 'Up to' includes the endpoint itself in a way that 'till' does not: 'up to Friday' can mean 'including Friday', whereas 'till Friday' usually means 'before Friday'. 'Through' (American English) includes the entire period including the endpoint: 'open Monday through Friday' means closed on Saturday; 'open Monday till Friday' could mean closed on Friday. Choose 'till' for most casual spoken contexts, 'until' for essays and formal letters, and 'through' only when you specifically mean the endpoint is included.

till ↗until ↗up tothrough ↗

Etymology

Old EnglishOld NorseEnglish

The temporal preposition 'till' comes from Old English 'til' (a preposition meaning 'to'), related to Old Norse 'til' (to, until). The agricultural verb 'till' comes from a different Old English root 'tilian' (to strive for, cultivate), which is related to 'till' (goal, aim) — the idea being that the farmer works toward a goal through cultivating the land. The noun sense 'cash drawer' appeared in the 1600s, originally from the verb sense 'to draw out' or from Old English 'tillian' (to obtain), as the drawer was where money obtained from sales was kept. The geological noun 'till' (glacial deposit) dates from the 1800s and is unrelated — it comes from a Scottish dialect word for coarse, stony soil.