Almost there - but not before time! (6)
I believe the answer is:
nearly
'almost' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'there but not before time' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'time' could be 'early' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'early' is located in the answer.
A single letter 'n' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for nearly that I've seen before include "Not entirely" , "Almost, not quite" , "parsimoniously" , "Close" , "Give out a bright light" .)