Recently I told a colleague that I'd get him my review by Thursday. By that I had meant by the end of the day on Thursday. However, as I thought about it, he might have been expecting it at the end of the day on Wednesday.

What do you think?

I;d use it to mean some time on Thursday.

While I see your point regarding possible ambiguity, I would assume as does Bob - any time Thursday.

Of what year?

Why, Proofreader, that would be 5772 - she's Jewish, you know.

Doesn't look a day over 5,000.

To be strictly accurate I'd assume by the end of the working day on Thursday.

Well, I'd worried that "by Thursday" meant any time before Thursday. I guess I was wrong.

If he delivered it 10 minutes before quitting time on Thursday, he still got it in by Thursday.

If you'd said "By Thursday" to me, I'd expect it by the end of the day Wednesday.

If you said "on Thursday" or "by the end of Thursday" it would be more clear.

There you go, CW. Me too! In that context, I'd think by meant before. I think I used it wrong.

Monday morning at the earliest

"I'll get it to you by Thursday" is already an admission that something is late, so what difference can one more day make? That extra day is Friday and nobody is going to take a Friday deadline seriously because you are not going to take the weekend off to deal with the thing. Hence, Monday.

Hmmm, that's another take on it.

Actually Graham's sense of time on this one is culturally accurate for a large part of the world.