Synonyms for earlier
ear·li·er

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. earlier

   Antecedent may denote simple priority in time, implying no direct connection between that which goes before and that which follows; as, the striking of one clock may be always antecedent to the striking of another with no causal connection between them. Antecedent and previous may refer to that which goes or happens at any distance in advance, preceding is limited to that which is immediately or next before; an antecedent event may have happened at any time before; the preceding transaction is the one completed just before the one with which it is compared; a previous statement or chapter may be in any part of the book that has gone before; the preceding statement or chapter comes next before without an interval. Previous often signifies first by right; as, a previous engagement. Foregoing is used only of that which is spoken or written; as, the foregoing statements. Anterior, while it can be used of time, is coming to be employed chiefly with reference to place; as the anterior lobes of the brain. Prior bears exclusive reference to time, and commonly where that which is first in time is first also in right; as, a prior demand. Former is used of time, or of position in written or printed matter, not of space in general. We can say former times, a former chapter, etc., but not the former part of a garden; we should say the front part of the garden, the forward car of a train. Former has a close relation, or sharp contrast, with something following; the former always implies the latter, even when not fully expressed, as in Acts i, 1, and Eccles. vii, 10.

   Synonyms:
   antecedent, anterior, foregoing, former, forward, front, introductory, precedent, preceding, preliminary, previous, prior

   Antonyms:
   after, concluding, consequent, following, hind, hinder, hindmost, later, latter, posterior, subsequent, succeeding

   Preposition:
   Such was the state of things previous to the revolution. [Previous to is often used adverbially, in constructions where previously to would be more strictly correct; as, these arrangements were made previous to my departure.]

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. earlier, earliestadverb

   (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"

   Synonyms:
   earliest

   Antonyms:
   late, middle

2. earlier, beforeadverb

   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"

   Synonyms:
   in the beginning, originally, ahead, to begin with, sooner, in front, in the first place, before

   Antonyms:
   middle, late

3. sooner, earlieradverb

   comparatives of `soon' or `early'

   "Come a little sooner, if you can"; "came earlier than I expected"

   Synonyms:
   sooner, rather, in the beginning, originally, before, to begin with, preferably, in the first place

   Antonyms:
   middle, late

4. in the first place, earlier, in the beginning, to begin with, originallyadverb

   before now

   "why didn't you tell me in the first place?"

   Synonyms:
   in the beginning, primitively, in the first place, originally, before, sooner, to begin with, primarily

   Antonyms:
   late, middle

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. earlieradjective

   Synonyms:
   antecedent

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "earlier":

   previous, previously, sooner, early, before, prior, former, above, formerly, preceding, anterior, past, soon, ago, already, earller, lately, beforehand

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How to use earlier in a sentence?

1. Jean Paul Friedrich Richter:

   In later life, as in earlier, only a few persons influence the formation of our character the multitude pass us by like a distant army.

2. Annabelle Sheehan:

   Certainly, the fact that we are able to start earlier than some countries is great, much as it's distressing to see that the pandemic is still such a challenge around the world.

3. Rick Friedman:

   He killed his baby and [the baby is] in the house...His wife broke up with him over the phone yesterday...I can't even believe this is happening. Steven Pladl, 42, was found dead Thursday morning in his vehicle in Dover, N.Y., several miles from the New Milford, Conn., murder scene where Katie and her adoptive father, 56-year-old Anthony Fusco, were discovered. Those two were also found dead in a vehicle that had one of its windows shot out, police said. The child’s body was found inside Pladl's home, hundreds of miles south in Knightdale, N.C., the same day. Pladl’s mother -- the one who tipped off authorities about the toddler's death -- had obtained custody of the child Steven fathered with his daughter following their arrests in January for adultery and contributing to delinquency, police told WNCN. The mother lives in Cary, about a half hour’s drive from Knightdale, and reportedly told them that Steve had picked Bennett up from her home Wednesday night. April 12, 2018: Police work at the scene where Katie Pladl and her adoptive father, Anthony Fusco, were found dead. (AP/Hearst Connecticut Media ) The toddler was found dead around 9 a.m. Thursday after officers performed a welfare check on the Knightdale home, where Pladl -- and previously his daughter -- had lived. Katie Pladl moved out of the home earlier this year and was living with her adoptive family in New York after bonding out of jail in Virginia, WNCN reported, citing court documents. It appeared Steven Pladl drove through the night Wednesday to hunt down his daughter and Fusco. They were found dead around 8:40 a.m. Thursday, and Pladl shot himself shortly afterward. This is a terrible tragedy that nobody foresaw, i really believe that if the judges or the prosecutor or the defense attorneys in this case had any clue that the minor child or anyone would be harmed there would not be a bond set for any of the parties.

4. Mike Minnis:

   I think there is a misconception that every NFL player is on a 6,000-calorie diet. That is not necessarily true, one thing to consider is that the training load and stimulus of practices and overall training usually changes as the season progresses, and as a result, the athlete is not burning near the same number of calories that he was earlier in training camp and at the beginning of the season.

5. Kim Moon-il:

   Fed Chair Janet Yellen's speech earlier this week is still dragging the dollar down, sparking risk appetite globally.