at long last
12
3.1
- idiom
:
por fin
- After a long wait, at long last, the concert tickets went on sale.
- at long last, finally
- Now, at long last
- Then, at long last
It was it was a huge day in Washington, DC because at long last, President Joe Biden has released his new budget.
- It was it was a huge day in Washington, DC because at long last, President Joe Biden has released his new budget.
- Hot Ones fans, it's been years in the making, but at long last, the next big thing in wings is finally here, introducing Hot Ones Buffalo Sauce.
- And then it's like tech guys, at long last we have created the Torment Nexus.
- Sir, at long last, do you back it up like a Tonka truck?
- And I just hope that people have tired of this at long last.
Examples
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So good to meet you at long last!
-
As the twentieth century comes to an end, civil society is at long last alive and well in a democratic Portugal.
Academic text (1998) -
And now, at long last, we can return to our initial question.
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Well, gentlemen, at long last, we are all agreed on something.
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I thought I was going to get answers and maybe justice at long last.
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Four years of devastating Civil War were at long last, finally over.
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But at long last, day 90 arrived.
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And now, at long last, it is time to conjure together once more.
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Yeah, it'll be great to see you in the flesh, at long last.
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But today, at long last, we are tasting all the favorite foods of an MKVIP.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Shows that something happens at the end of a long wait
∞
3.0
After a long time
864
4.0
In the end, after everything else is done
790
1.0
Finally, after everything has been thought about
427
1.0
Finally after a long wait or delay
Antonyms
How Final
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'finally after a long delay' is directly derivable from the constituents: 'long' (for an extended time) plus 'last' (final/end) with 'at' marking the temporal point, so the phrase literally signals the end of a long period. This compositional temporal logic is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would very likely infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
At long last comes from older use of long and last to show that something took a long time to happen. Imagine waiting a long time for a train, and when it finally arrives you say at long last, so it means 'finally' after a long wait.