Earlier

6 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Early \Ear"ly\, a. [Compar. {Earlier} ([~e]r"l[i^]*[~e]r);
     superl. {Earliest}.] [OE. earlich. [root]204. See {Early},
     adv.]
     1. In advance of the usual or appointed time; in good season;
        prior in time; among or near the first; -- opposed to
        {late}; as, the early bird; an early spring; early fruit.


        [1913 Webster]
  
              Early and provident fear is the mother of safety.
                                                    --Burke.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The doorsteps and threshold with the early grass
              springing up about them.              --Hawthorne.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. Coming in the first part of a period of time, or among the
        first of successive acts, events, etc.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Seen in life's early morning sky.     --Keble.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The forms of its earlier manhood.     --Longfellow.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The earliest poem he composed was in his seventeenth
              summer.                               --J. C.
                                                    Shairp.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     {Early English} (Philol.) See the Note under {English}.
  
     {Early English architecture}, the first of the pointed or
        Gothic styles used in England, succeeding the Norman style
        in the 12th and 13th centuries.
  
     Syn: Forward; timely; not late; seasonable.
          [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  earlier \earlier\ adj.
     occurring at a prior time; as, on earlier occasions.
     [WordNet 1.5]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  early
       adj 1: at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of
              events or before the usual or expected time; "early
              morning"; "an early warning"; "early diagnosis"; "an
              early death"; "took early retirement"; "an early
              spring"; "early varieties of peas and tomatoes mature
              before most standard varieties" [ant: {middle}, {late}]
       2: being or occurring at an early stage of development; "in an
          early stage"; "early forms of life"; "early man"; "an
          early computer" [ant: {late}]
       3: of the distant past; "the early inhabitants of Europe";
          "former generations"; "in other times" [syn: {early(a)}, {former(a)},
           {other(a)}]
       4: very young; "at an early age"
       5: of an early stage in the development of a language or
          literature; "the Early Hebrew alphabetical script is that
          used mainly from the 11th to the 6th centuries B.C.";
          "Early Modern English is represented in documents printed
          from 1476 to 1700" [ant: {middle}, {late}]
       6: expected in the near future; "look for an early end to the
          negotiations"
       adv 1: during an early stage; "early on in her career" [syn: {early
              on}]
       2: before the usual time or the time expected; "she graduated
          early"; "the house was completed ahead of time" [syn: {ahead
          of time}, {too soon}] [ant: {late}]
       3: in good time; "he awoke betimes that morning" [syn: {betimes}]
       [also: {earliest}, {earlier}]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  earlier
       adj : (comparative and superlative of `early') more early than;
             most early; "a fashion popular in earlier times"; "his
             earlier work reflects the influence of his teacher";
             "Verdi's earliest and most raucous opera" [syn: {earliest}]
       adv 1: earlier in time; previously; "I had known her before"; "as I
              said before"; "he called me the day before but your
              call had come even earlier"; "her parents had died
              four years earlier"; "I mentioned that problem
              earlier" [syn: {before}]
       2: comparatives of `soon' or `early'; "Come a little sooner, if
          you can"; "came earlier than I expected" [syn: {sooner}]
       3: before now; "why didn't you tell me in the first place?"
          [syn: {in the first place}, {in the beginning}, {to begin
          with}, {originally}]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  earlier
       See {early}

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  60 Moby Thesaurus words for "earlier":
     aforetime, already, antecedent, anterior, anticipatory, as yet,
     before, before all, before now, beforehand, beforetime, ci-devant,
     down, early, elder, ere, ere then, erenow, erewhile, erst,
     erstwhile, first, fore, foregoing, former, formerly, heretofore,
     historically, hitherto, in the past, in times past, inferior,
     lower, lowest, nether, older, once, only yesterday, or ever,
     preceding, precurrent, preexistent, prehistorically, previous,
     previously, prime, prior, priorly, recently, senior, so far,
     sooner, subjacent, then, theretofore, thus far, under, whilom,
     yesterday, yet