Meaning & use
stay on schedule
Last updated
Meaning
phraseintransitiveinformal
To continue according to a planned timetable; not be late or delayed.
Grammar: Intransitive; used with a subject that refers to a person, project, or process. Often followed by 'with': stay on schedule with the work.
Patterns
- stay on schedule
- stay on schedule with something
We need to stay on schedule if we want to finish by Friday.
Despite the bad weather, the construction crew stayed on schedule.
She uses a calendar to help her stay on schedule with her assignments.
Common combinations
- stay on schedule with
- The team stayed on schedule with the software release.
- help stay on schedule
- Daily meetings help us stay on schedule.
- manage to stay on schedule
- We managed to stay on schedule despite the delays.
Synonyms and how they differ
- keep to schedule
- Very similar, but slightly more formal and often used in British English.
- be on time
- Usually refers to a single event or appointment, not a whole project or process.
Opposites
Commonly confused: stay on schedule or on schedule?
stay on schedule vs on schedule
Means 'happening at the planned time', a state, not an action. You can be on schedule, but you stay on schedule by working.
Practice
The project manager reminded everyone to ______ schedule.
Choose one answer.
The fixed phrase is 'stay on schedule'. 'Stay in' means remain indoors, 'stay at' is used for places like hotels, and 'stay for' means remain for an event.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “stay on schedule”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.