Did you make it to class right before the starting bell? Perhaps you clocked in with only seconds left before you would be considered late? Maybe you happened to buy the very last jelly-glazed donut in the shop. If so, then the phrase in the nick of time is perfect for your situation. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this expression.<\/p>\n
The meaning of nick of time, or \u201cin the nick of time\u201d is the last instant. Someone can do or say something right before it is too late, hence, the nick of time. At the last moment is another common meaning of the phrase nick of time. Earlier forms of the phrase referred to a critical moment, or close as possible. It can also be said to be the precise moment of an event or the pinnacle of an occurrence.<\/strong><\/p>\n Only just in time is another meaning, as well as at the precise moment of occurrence. The nick of time is used to refer to both positive and negative events. For example, someone arriving to catch their train to work in the nick of time. Or, missing a flight bound for disaster in the nick of time. In all references, it simply means arriving or doing something at the very last moment, thereby averting an alternative outcome.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that I will make it to the program in the nick of time, there is just so much traffic but I know a shortcut\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe doctor was able to remove her appendix in the nick of time\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cMy parents arrived in the nick of time to watch me walk across the stage for my graduation\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cHer cancer was diagnosed in the nick of time, even a day later would have resulted in a negative outcome\u201d.<\/p>\n The term in the nick of time comes from an older phrase, \u201cthe critical moment\u201d. This phrase came about in 1577. In a chronicle, someone was described as having arrived at the very pinch, which was then called \u201cnicke\u201d. About a century later, the word was modernized to nick. Once the word was modernized, the phrase \u201cin the nick of time\u201d become commonplace. One of the earliest writings that contained the phrase in the nick of time was by Sir Walter Scott in 1821. He penned the phrase in his book, the Pirate, which was released that same year.<\/p>\nExample Usage<\/h2>\n
Origin<\/h2>\n