German word

frühestens

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈfʁyːəstn̩s/

Meaning

  • adverbat the earliest

Example

Du kannst frühestens am Freitag antworten.

You can reply on Friday at the earliest.

Illustration for frühestens (at the earliest)

More examples

Wir können frühestens ab Montag mit der Arbeit beginnen.

We can begin work from Monday at the earliest.

Core concept

A calendar line has a left-hand boundary for an event, with all earlier dates outside the allowed interval.

Common phrases

  • frühestens ab Montag

    from Monday at the earliest

  • frühestens am Abend

    in the evening at the earliest

  • frühestens gegen Ende des Monats

    around the end of the month at the earliest

Similar words

erst: Shows that an action or result does not occur before the stated time or date.
spätestens: Shows that something must be finished no later than the stated time or date.
früher: Points to an earlier period or to an event that occurred before now.

Definition in German

Gibt an, ab welchem frühesten Zeitpunkt etwas stattfinden darf oder möglich ist.

Word origin

The word is formed from the German adjective früh, its superlative frühest, and the adverb-forming ending -ens.

Usage tips

  • A weekday phrase normally keeps its preposition after frühestens, as in frühestens am Freitag, while a date can also follow directly, as in frühestens Freitag.

Opposites

Related words

  • Frühwarnsystemearly warning systemnoun
  • Frühaufsteherearly risernoun

Word lists with this word