by now / meanwhile
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by now
Describes a change that has taken place from an earlier point in time up to now; in the sense of 'mittlerweile' (by now).
Anfangs war er sehr schüchtern, aber inzwischen ist er viel selbstbewusster geworden.
At first he was very shy, but by now he has become much more confident.
meanwhile
Refers to the time while something else is happening; in the sense of 'in der Zwischenzeit' (in the meantime) or 'währenddessen' (meanwhile).
Ich gehe kurz einkaufen, du kannst inzwischen schon mal den Kaffee kochen.
I'm just going shopping for a bit; meanwhile, you can start making the coffee.
The word is a compound of 'in' and 'zwischen' (between). So it literally describes a state or action that takes place 'in the time between' two moments or events.
Früher mochte ich keinen Fisch, inzwischen esse ich ihn sehr gerne.
I used to not like fish, but by now I really enjoy eating it.
'Inzwischen' is an adverb that often stands at the beginning of a sentence (position 1). In this case, the conjugated verb moves to position 2, directly after 'inzwischen.'
Inzwischen hat sich die Situation beruhigt.
By now the situation has calmed down.
The meaning depends on the context. If 'inzwischen' refers to a change between the past and today, it means 'mittlerweile' (by now). If it describes two simultaneous actions, it means 'währenddessen' (meanwhile).
Er zog nach Berlin und hat inzwischen eine Familie gegründet.
He moved to Berlin and by now has started a family.
already
Schon and inzwischen can express that something has already happened by now. Schon often emphasizes that it happened early or unexpectedly, while inzwischen highlights the development since an earlier point in time. Use schon when something happened earlier than expected, and inzwischen when comparing the situation with how it was before.
Nach mehreren Monaten kann Lea inzwischen allein fahren.
After several months, Lea can now drive on her own.
Nach wenigen Wochen kann Lea schon allein fahren.
After just a few weeks, Lea can already drive on her own.
