The phrase sooner rather than later is wordy for soon. How this clunky, illogical phrase ever became popular is a mystery, but perhaps some writers feel that soon on its own is not emphatic enough. Available alternatives include before long, shortly, sooner than expected, and in the near future. And when these are not strong enough, there’s always very soon, as soon as possible, and now.
Examples
In fact, any borrowing that you are contemplating should be done sooner rather than later as rates are likely to go up. [Forbes]
While some may scoff, I, too, believe that spring will be here sooner rather than later. [Seacoast Online]
The reality is that the company needs to start releasing more hit games, and sooner rather than later. [San Francisco Chronicle]
Debt stability also might make it possible for Ireland to raise market funding sooner rather than later. [Wall Street Journal]
If we don’t make a major course correction with regard to the federal budget, a major course correction will be forced on us – sooner rather than later. [Washington Post]
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