What is the meaning of Presently?
Immediately, at once; quickly.
Before long; soon.
With actual presence; in actuality.
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Some older usage guides, especially for UK English, object to the sense meaning “now”, though most major modern dictionaries do not. In medieval and Elizabethan times, “presently” meant “now” (but in the sense of “immediately” rather than “currently”). The Random House Unabridged Dictionary dates the sense of “now” back to the 15th century—noting it is “in standard use in all varieties of speech and writing in both Great Britain and the United States”—and dates the appearance of the sense of “soon” to the 16th century. Presently meaning “now” is most often used with the present tense (The professor is presently on sabbatical leave) and presently meaning “soon” often with the future tense (The supervisor will be back presently). Merriam-Webster mentions the same vintage for the sense of “now”, and that “it is not clear why it is objectionable.” The fourth edition of the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language states that despite its use “nowadays in literate speech and writing” that there is still “lingering prejudice against this use”. In the late 1980s, only 50% of the dictionary’s Usage Panel approved of the sentence:
General Walters is […] presently the United States Ambassador to the United Nations.
The eleventh edition of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary lists both usages without comment. The Chambers 21st Century Dictionary merely flags the sense of “now” as “[North American], especially [USA]”.
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