yet

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as yet

At this time; yet. No one has responded to my email as yet, so I don't have an answer for you.

See also: yet

so near (and) yet so far

1. Some outcome is or was very close to happening, but it will not, may not, or did not happen, and therefore it seems like it is or was never so close. They reached the semifinals, only to have their championship dreams dashed by a crushing 4-0 defeat. So near, yet so far.

2. One is very close to completing or succeeding at something, but there is still difficult work to do before that can happen. I finished the rough draft of my thesis, but I still have to edit and proofread it. I'm so near and yet so far.

there's life in the old dog yet

One still has vitality or the ability to perform certain actions despite one's advanced age. Did you see Grandpa out on the dance floor? There's life in the old dog yet! I know you think I'm all broken down, but I can still hold my own when I need to. There's life in this old dog yet!

not just yet

Very soon; not at this exact moment. A: "Will I make the announcement?" B: "Not just yet; let everyone get settled in first." We're not finished just yet. We need a few more minutes to get everything ready.

(someone) hasn't seen nothing yet

Someone has only glimpsed or experienced the beginning of something that will become even more exciting, impressive, or important. (The word "ain't," a colloquial form of "hasn't" or "haven't," is often used instead.) I could tell your parents are already impressed with the house, but they haven't seen nothing yet! A: "Wow, there is so much going on in this city all at once!" B: "Just wait, darling, you haven't seen nothing yet—it only really comes alive at night!"

(someone) ain't seen nothing yet

Someone has only glimpsed or experienced the beginning of something that will become even more exciting, impressive, or important. (The word "ain't" is a colloquial form of "hasn't" or "haven't," which are sometimes used instead.) I could tell your parents are already impressed with the house, but they ain't seen nothing yet! A: "Wow, there is so much going on in this city all at once!" B: "Just wait, darling, you ain't seen nothing yet—it only really comes alive at night!"

are we having fun yet

A phrase used sarcastically or humorously when something is not as enjoyable as one had hoped it would be. Are we having fun yet? We've only spent most of our vacation day stuck in traffic!

the mills of God grind slowly(, but they grind exceedingly fine)

Destiny will deliver an outcome that is correct, just, and inevitable, though it may take a long time to come to be. It was a disheartening verdict, to be sure, but we aren't losing hope for a successful outcome eventually. The mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine. The mills of God grind slowly, and we've been making slow but steady progress in this country over the last three decades, but it seems like those mills have sputtered to a halt lately.

See also: but, exceedingly, god, grind, mill, of

mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceeding small

Prov. It may take a long time, but evil will always be punished. Jill: It really doesn't seem right that Fred can be so horrible and dishonest, but he always gets everything he wants. Jane: Be patient. The mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceeding small.

See also: god, grind, mill, of, small, yet

You ain't seen nothing yet!

Rur. The best, most exciting, or cleverest part is yet to come! (The use of ain't is a fixed part of this idiomatic expression.) Alice: Well, the first act was simply divine. Sue: Stick around. You ain'tseen nothing yet! Mary: This part of the city is really beautiful. Bill: You ain't seen nothing yet!

as yet

So far, up to now, as in No one has found a solution as yet. [Late 1300s]

See also: yet

so near and yet so far

so near yet so far

You say so near and yet so far or so near yet so far to say that someone almost achieved what they wanted, but in the end just failed. It was a case of so near yet so far yesterday for Catriona Jones when she finished just one shot behind the tournament winner.

there's life in the old dog yet

despite appearances to the contrary, an old person is still full of vigour, enthusiasm, etc.

so near and yet so far

a rueful comment on a situation in which you have narrowly failed to achieve an aim.

you ain't seen nothing yet

there is something even more extreme or impressive in store. informal

This expression was popularized by Al Jolson's aside in the 1927 film The Jazz Singer, ‘you ain't heard nuttin' yet’.

not just ˈyet

not now but probably quite soon: I can’t give you the money just yet.

there’s ˌlife in the old dog ˈyet

(humorous) a person is old but is still active and enjoys life: At 70 he’s decided to go round the world. There’s life in the old dog yet! ♢ I’m not too old to enjoy myself! There’s life in the old dog yet, you know.

so ˌnear and ˌyet so ˈfar

used to describe a situation in which somebody is very near to success, but finally fails: He came second in the piano competition, only one point behind the winner. So near and yet so far.

as ˈyet

until now or until a particular time in the past: an as yet unpublished report ♢ As yet little is known about the disease.

See also: yet

Are we having fun yet?

and AWHFY

sent. & comp. abb. This isn’t the fun that you stated or implied it would be, is it? Are we having fun yet? This is really dull. Gr8t d8t! AWHFY?

as yet

Up to the present time; up to now.

See also: yet

References in classic literature ?

Yet I exist in the hope that these memoirs, in some manner, I know not how, may find their way to the minds of humanity in Some Dimension, and may stir up a race of rebels who shall refuse to be confined to limited Dimensionality.

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Sometimes, seized with sudden agony, he could not continue his tale; at others, his voice broken, yet piercing, uttered with difficulty the words so replete with anguish.

I wish to soothe him, yet can I counsel one so infinitely miserable, so destitute of every hope of consolation, to live?

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And yet I once heard this tale before, though I had long forgotten it.

Nada is not yet at your gates, and perhaps she will never find them.

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Yet he would jog quietly on with his teachings, taking no heed to her mutiny, until suddenly she would be conquered by his patience, and break into self-revilings a hundred times stronger than her fault demanded.

And yet, sooth to say, there were times when he had to ask himself whether it was not the Lady Maude who was gaining sway and influence over him.

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Yet I was not then taking notes merely in order to be able to give you a description of roulette, but in order to get my bearings as to my behaviour when I myself should begin to play.

I said very seriously, "Yes," and then added: "Possibly my certainty about winning may seem to you ridiculous; yet, pray leave me in peace.

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Nor did they not perceave the evil plight In which they were, or the fierce pains not feel; Yet to their Generals Voyce they soon obeyd Innumerable.

For who can yet beleeve, though after loss, That all these puissant Legions, whose exile Hath emptied Heav'n, shall faile to re-ascend Self-rais'd, and repossess their native seat.

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You scold yourself; you know it is only your nerves -- and yet, and yet.

They were sombre blues, opaque like a delicately carved bowl in lapis lazuli, and yet with a quivering lustre that suggested the palpitation of mysterious life; there were purples, horrible like raw and putrid flesh, and yet with a glowing, sensual passion that called up vague memories of the Roman Empire of Heliogabalus; there were reds, shrill like the berries of holly -- one thought of Christmas in England, and the snow, the good cheer, and the pleasure of children -- and yet by some magic softened till they had the swooning tenderness of a dove's breast; there were deep yellows that died with an unnatural passion into a green as fragrant as the spring and as pure as the sparkling water of a mountain brook.

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I climbed the grass-clad mountain, And my gaze swept far and wide For the rosy lights of a little room, Where I thought my mother sighed: My boy has gone for a soldier, He sleeps not day and night; But my boy is wise, and may yet return, Though the dead lie far from sight.

I climbed the topmost summit, And my gaze swept far and wide For the garden roof where my brother stood, And I fancied that he sighed: My brother serves as a soldier With his comrades night and day; But my brother is wise, and may yet return, Though the dead lie far away.