at the last minute vs in the last minute

The correct phrase is 'at the last minute.' It is a common expression used to describe something that happens or is done just before a deadline or an event. 'In the last minute' is not a standard phrase in English for this context.

Last updated: March 15, 2024 • 4593 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English.

"at the last minute"

This phrase is used to describe something that happens or is done just before a deadline or an event.

Examples:

He always finishes his work at the last minute.
She made a decision at the last minute.
They arrived at the last minute.
I managed to catch the train at the last minute.
The team scored a goal at the last minute.

Show examples from the web [+]

Maybe he just pulled up sick at the last minute.
Because at the last minute, the adoption fell through.
Job interview came up at the last minute.
Something came up at the last minute.
I'll join them at the last minute.
But at the last minute, we were found.
Added at the last minute and not approved by me.
My friend didn't just bail at the last minute.
You don't usually cram at the last minute.
Backed out at the last minute.
It fell through at the last minute.
Your own people will kill you at the last minute.
They changed the program at the last minute and played nothing but Sibelius.
She lost her venue at the last minute.
Here's hoping nothing else happens at the last minute.
Jay called to cancel at the last minute.
On safety grounds, carriers sometimes replace aircraft at the last minute.
The hotel had to swap them at the last minute.
We switched up the schedule a little bit at the last minute.
I am so sorry, but the babysitter canceled at the last minute.

Alternatives:

at the eleventh hour
at the final moment
at the last second
at the deadline
just in time

This phrase is not a standard expression in English for this context.

"in the last minute"

Show examples from the web [+]

I tell you, because to become Dr. Zu in the last minute was not easy.
Personally, I confessed people called in the last minute of their lives.
You seem to be a busy man, but you managed to take the floor in the last minute.
It was moved in the last minute from original host country Lebanon due to the unrest in that country.
Four hard right hands Neary has belted in the last minute.
You've looked at this pack three times in the last minute.
Changes made to the document in the last minute will be permanently lost.
However, it was possible to vote in the last minute before closing.
Visualization of the tenth of second in the last minute of count.
They always throw stuff at you in the last minute.
Now, the interesting thing about this is when I take the lines away, it's as if you haven't learned anything in the last minute.
Now, imagine if there was someone who promised to change your appearance and then in the last minute, he just changed his mind.
When a game is coming to an end, the stakes rise, because in the last minute the points gained are doubled.
Have you seen any other car go by in the last minute?
He appeared in the headlines for having replaced in the last minute the ill Michele Mariotti in a performance of I due Foscari at La Scala in 2016 and has since been noticed by the international critics who recognise his great worth.
Or, perhaps, the word of remaining in the homeland only matured in the last minute of the tenth day.
Once again tonight we squandered several easy chances and, in the last minute of the first half, we were made to pay for them.
Then there was Keith Earls' tackle in the last minute against Italy, the game was already won but he didn't give up and ran back from their 22 to make that try-saving tackle.
Have you seen a pastry girl with a package under her arm in the last minute and a half?
CA: So just tell us, very quickly in the last minute, the story: what happened in Iceland?

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at the last minute vs in the last minute