idiom · neutral
at the last minute
UK/æt ðə ˈlɑːst ˈmɪnɪt/US/æt ðə ˈlæst ˈmɪnɪt/at·the·LAST·minute
speakingtask2
just before a deadline or just before something is due
Examples
“I booked my flight at the last minute and it was expensive.”
“She handed in the report at the last minute.”
“They cancelled the match at the last minute because of heavy rain.”
Band 8 sentence
“I admit I started revising at the last minute, but I still managed to improve my grade through focused revision.”
Collocations
- at the last minute + (clause)
- a last-minute decision
Word family
last-minute adjective
Common mistakes
in the last minute→at the last minute
at last minute→at the last minute
Say it for a higher band
5very late→6at the end→7+at the last minute
Synonyms
just in time
Easily confused
in the nick of time
“He arrived in the nick of time to catch the train.”
Related words
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In Time
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