資料來源 : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
{At last}, at the end of a certain period; after delay. ``The
duke of Savoy felt that the time had at last arrived.''
--Motley.
{At the last}. [Prob. fr. AS. on l[=a]ste behind, following
behind, fr. l[=a]st race, track, footstep. See {Last} mold
of the foot.] At the end; in the conclusion. [Obs.] ``Gad,
a troop shall overcome him; but he shall overcome at the
last.'' --Gen. xlix. 19.
{Last heir}, the person to whom lands escheat for want of an
heir. [Eng.] --Abbott.
{On one's last legs}, at, or near, the end of one's
resources; hence, on the verge of failure or ruin,
especially in a financial sense. [Colloq.]
{To breathe one's last}, to die.
{To the last}, to the end; till the conclusion.
And blunder on in business to the last. --Pope.
Syn: {At Last}, {At Length}.
Usage: These phrases both denote that some delayed end or
result has been reached. At length implies that a long
period was spent in so doing; as, after a voyage of
more than three months, we at Length arrived safe. At
last commonly implies that something has occurred (as
interruptions, disappointments, etc.) which leads us
to emphasize the idea of having reached the end; as,
in spite of every obstacle, we have at last arrived.