> Gaack. Anybody using "presently" to mean "now" is using the word ignorantly and incorrectly. I've personally never heard anyone use it to mean "now," but if a lot of people here do, it's an abundant mistake, not a proper alternate meaning.


How to put this? Um.... no.

I own literally dozens of dictionaries and usage guides, and almost all say the same thing. A few quotes follow.


Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage (1989), after a page and a half defending "presently = now", ends with this:

"The sense of `presently' meaning `at present' has been in more or less continuous standard usage since 1485. The commentators who warn against its use do so without good reason. There is nothing wrong with it."


The Random House Dictionary of the English Language 2nd Edition Unabridged (1987) has this usage note:

"The two apparently contradictory meanings of PRESENTLY, `in a little while, soon' and `at the present time, now' are both old in the language. In the latter meaning PRESENTLY dates back to the 15th century. It is currently in standard use in all varieties of speech and writing in both Great Britain and the United States. The sense `soon' arose gradually during the 16th century. Strangely, it is the older sense `now' that is sometimes objected to by usage guides. The two senses are rarely if ever confused in actual practice."


The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 3rd edition (1992):

"[PRESENTLY meaning `now'] has survived in popular usage and is widely found nowadays in literate speech and writing."


That last one goes on to talk about the prejudice against that meaning held by some commentators. I found a few examples of this; Strunk and White held (in my 1979 edition) that the word should be restricted to the "soon" meaning, and Safire thought the word should be avoided entirely. The best reading on this I can suggest is the essay in the first book I quoted, which is a wonderful reference for anyone really interested in words and their use.

-- Trip