By vs Until
As a consequence of the apparent similarity between by and until, people tend to ignore the difference between by and until. That is why it is necessary to emphasize that there is a difference between the two words by and until. What is there to tell about these two words by and until apart from their difference in usage? The word by has its origin in the Old English words bī, bi, be. At the same time, the word until has its origins in the Middle English. When it comes to the word by there are a number of phrases that use by such as by and by, by and large, by the by, etc.
What does By mean?
The word by is normally used as a preposition and it is used in the sense of ‘before’ or sometimes ‘on or before’ as in the sentences given below.
The agenda should be ready by Monday.
The homework should be completed by tomorrow.
In the first sentence, the word by conveys the meaning of ‘before’ and the meaning of the sentence would be ‘the agenda should be ready before Monday’. On the other hand, in the second sentence, the word by gives the meaning of ‘on or before’ and the sentence would mean ‘the homework should be completed on or before tomorrow’. Moreover, though the word until is sometimes used as a conjunction, the word by is mainly used as a preposition.
What does Until mean?
On the other hand, the word until gives the meaning of ‘up to’ or ‘till’ as in the sentences given below.
He will be on leave until he gets cured.
She will not return the papers until she is paid the fee.
In the first sentence, the word until conveys the meaning of ‘up to’ and the meaning of the sentence would be ‘he will be on leave up to the day he gets cured’. In the second sentence, the word until gives the sense of ‘till’ and the meaning of the sentence would be ‘she will not return the papers till the time she is paid the fee’. It is interesting to note that the word until is used as a conjunction that often connects two sentences. Look at the sentence given below.
Until you go, you will not meet the person you want to meet.
In the sentence given above, the word until is used as a conjunction to create a sentence out of two different sentences.
What is the difference between By and Until?
• The word by is normally used as a preposition.
• The word by is used in the sense of ‘before’ or sometimes ‘on or before.’
• On the other hand, the word until gives the meaning of ‘up to’ or ‘till.’ This is the main difference between the two words, namely, by and until.
• The word until is used as a conjunction that often connects two sentences.
These are the important differences between the two words by and until. These differences between by and until should be carefully studied in order to use them in the English language without a confusion.
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