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A politician promises to, say, plant 1,000 trees "by 2022". Will one be able to tell if the promise was fulfilled on January 1, 2022 or on January 1, 2023?

Dimitri Shvorob
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  • I don't have a source but I would certainly interpret it as by the start of 2022. If they meant it to mean the end of 2022 it would also be very normal to say "by the end of 2022" – windwally Apr 07 '22 at 17:15
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    It's ambiguous. In a M-F work week, by end of day and by end of week mean you have until today's end and Friday's end - that's inclusive. But by the time you're 18 means get it done before you turn 18, not during that year. Exclusive. – Yosef Baskin Apr 07 '22 at 17:17
  • @YosefBaskin in your examples its the "end of" portion that makes it clear. Is there an example of "by x" where they clearly meant "end of" without using that phrase? – windwally Apr 07 '22 at 17:19
  • If my work is due by Monday, I'm gonna get it done sometime during Monday. If the boss wanted it before Monday started, the boss shudda made damn sure to say by Friday. – Yosef Baskin Apr 07 '22 at 17:25
  • @YosefBaskin With days ("by Monday"), it's clear. (Although many a non-native-English-speaker will be caught out. The Russian equivalent of "by", for example - "do" - is exclusive of the endpoint). With longer periods of time - years, months, weeks - I feel it is less so. – Dimitri Shvorob Apr 07 '22 at 19:37
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    @YosefBaskin I disagree, if the deadline is "by Monday" I would consider that the work needs to be ready for the start of business on Monday. If that means working on it over the weekend then so be it. For instance if someone wants a cake baking or a tree decorating "by Christmas" they need it to be ready before Christmas Day arrives. – BoldBen Apr 07 '22 at 23:47
  • https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/106167/before-date-versus-by-date – R.S. Apr 08 '22 at 09:21
  • @BoldBen I think it will often depend on the context, which should it make it clear what the specific date or time the result is needed. Since people open presents on Xmas morning, obviously "buy the present by Christmas" means before then. But if there's nothing specific about the time of year that the trees are needed, "plant trees by 2022" could be inclusive (since the politician likely wants to make the deadline most favorable to himself). – Barmar Apr 08 '22 at 19:49
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    The question's having a bounty precludes it from being closed now, but it should have been closed as a duplicate of english.stackexchange.com/questions/56335. – jsw29 Apr 09 '22 at 20:40
  • ... Indeed. 'Does notified by [date] include the end date?' // The ambiguity of the temporal sense(s) is shown by Cambridge Dictionary: << by [preposition] ... not later than; at or before: ...

    • The application must be in by the 31st to be accepted. >> Not later than the 31st or before the 31st?

     – Edwin Ashworth Apr 10 '22 at 18:55

2 Answers2

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I think the ambiguity stems from the difference between instantaneous points in time and periods of time. By my interpretation:

  • "the end of the week" refers to the instantaneous point that marks the end of the last day of the week, e.g., 17:00 on Friday; whereas
  • "Monday" refers to a 24-hour period of time, or possibly the working hours within that period, e.g., 09:00–17:00. Significantly, periods of time are described by two instantaneous points: a start and an end.

Also, I interpret "by", in a chronological context, to mean "before" – at the specified instantaneous point the condition will be met. Admittedly, neither Merriam-Webster nor Thesaurus.com list "by" as a synonym of "before".

By my logic, "hand in the work by Monday" is an unclear phrase: "by" requires an instantaneous point in time but "Monday" constitutes two. In this situation, I would opt to conservatively interpret "Monday" as meaning the "the starting point of the period labelled Monday".

As much as I like this logic, I don't think I'm on the winning side:

  • Cambridge Dictionary defines "by" as "not later than; at or before". My interpretation was simply "before".

  • Most of the answers in other threads I read are not in my favour. General perception seems to be that "by [period]" includes the duration of the period.

    Other threads:

    • English StackExchange
      Answers: 4 inclusive, 1 ambiguous
    • Quora
      Answers: 8 inclusive, 2 ambiguous, 1 exclusive
    • Linguaholic says inclusive
    • Avvo: Lawyer Larry Couture says inclusive within business hours, e.g., before 17:00.

  • "Use by" and "sell by" dates on food include the duration of the specified date. Although only advisory, "Best before" presumably does not, though.

To avoid ambiguity, I would personally recommend one use a phrase like "send me the slides ready for Tuesday". Alternatively, reword the sentence to specify an instantaneous point in time rather than a period, e.g., "we need to finish it by close-of-play Thursday" or "we can finish this by the end of the year".

In your case, I would hold that "by 2022" means "before 2022-01-01 00:00:00", but it seems like most people, and likely the politician, would disagree.

litres
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    Hello and welcome! This is a very well written first answer! – NVZ Apr 16 '22 at 00:55
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    Regrettably, I disagree. This answer states a personal opinion and then proceeds to demolish that position. While it does quote sources (which is what the question/bounty asks for), it's still not entirely unambiguous. And the question does not ask for alternatives – Andrew Leach Apr 16 '22 at 08:09
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    I provided sources contrary to my interpretation out of intellectual honesty, but I stand by my logic. The sources also show that there is no consensus – no source, however reputable, can change that. It's an ambiguous phrase. – litres Apr 16 '22 at 23:01
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    You have, with admirable honesty, acknowledged that the majority of answers posted elsewhere argue otherwise, but something that strongly supports your argument that there is an ambiguity in such formulations is the very fact that this question keeps recurring on this and similar sites: if there were no ambiguity in them, there wouldn't be so many people wondering how to interpret them. Also, some of the people who argue otherwise may be taking into account the considerations that are outside the language itself, such as what one may be legally able to 'get away with'. – jsw29 Apr 18 '22 at 16:07
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"By [year]" includes the duration of that year. So, if someone is supposed to do something "by 2022," then they can do it as late as December 31, 2022, and they will still be on time. If you have to submit something "by Friday," then you can submit it on Friday afternoon. However, if you have to submit something "by 5:00pm," that does not include the 5 o'clock hour -- if it's due "by 5:00pm," then you must submit it BEFORE 5:01pm.

zunojeef
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    Hello, zunojeef. Have you a reputable source that backs your view? Cambridge Dictionary seems not to: << by [preposition] ... not later than; at or before: ... • The application must be in by the 31st to be accepted. >> So 'not later than 2022' and 'before 2022' both seem to be licensed. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 16 '22 at 11:45
  • @EdwinAshworth I'm not sure what to tell you, but the definition you cited is consistent with what I wrote above. If an application must be submitted "ON January 31," that means you must submit it during that one specific day (not on the 30th or the 29th, nor on the 1st of the next month). In contrast, "BY January 31" means any time leading up to the 31st, including the day of the 31st itself, but NO LATER than that day. So, "by January 31" means you can submit it on Jan. 5, or Jan. 10, or Jan. 12, or Jan. 25, or Jan. 27, or Jan. 30, or Jan. 31, but NOT on Feb. 1 or any time later than that. – zunojeef Jul 10 '22 at 00:29
  • @EdwinAshworth If I said something is due "BEFORE Friday," then that does NOT include Friday itself. This is because a day cannot be "before" itself; that's logically impossible. So, if it's due "before Friday," then it's acceptable to submit it any time during Monday-Thursday, but no later than Thursday. If you wait until Friday morning, then you are technically past the deadline. In contrast, if it's due "BY Friday," then you can submit it early during Mon.-Thurs., or you can submit it on Friday, but NO LATER than Friday; if you wait until Saturday, then you have missed the deadline. – zunojeef Jul 10 '22 at 00:39