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Am I writing this sentence correctly?

At the end of the month I hardly ever have any money left.

Or should it be in the end of? I know that in the end means "finally", but I've sometimes seen the use of in the end of and I got confused.

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2 Answers 2

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The phrase in the end means "finally". It is normally used when you want to give the impression that a conclusion was arrived at after a lot of confusion or uncertainty.

For example:

In the end, the hero runs away with all the money.

At the end, on the other hand, means at the point when something stops. Here we are thinking of a single event, and not a series of events. Take, for example, the following sentence:

At the end of the song, the hero jumps into the river.

The single event that we are thinking of here is the end of the song. When we say "in the end", what we have in mind is a sequence of events, not just one event. You cannot say "in the end of the song".

Here are a few more examples.

At the end of the third day, the little boy ran away.

In the end, the little boy runs away.

It's wrong to say in the end of... It should always be phrased as at the end of.

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  • 1
    'In the end of the pipe there was a small notch."
    – Jim
    Commented Feb 1, 2014 at 19:25
  • 1
    "I don't like the first chord in measure 36 in the end of the song."
    – Jim
    Commented Feb 1, 2014 at 19:29
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Actually, "By the end of" would be more apt, if you mean to say that your money gets over before the month ends.Else, "At the end of" would be correct.

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  • I'm not sure if I'd go so far as to say it's "more apt," but it's at least "equally apt."
    – J.R.
    Commented Jan 23, 2016 at 11:00

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