Before

Part of speech: preposition, adverb, conjunction

Pronunciation: /bɪˈfɔː/

Definitions

1. Earlier in time than something else or in front of something in space or order
2. In the time preceding an event or positioned ahead of another in sequence or location
3. Prior to a specific point in time or situated in front of something either chronologically or spatially

Etymology: "Before" is a word that has been built from parts that each meant "front." Its Old English ancestor, "beforan," combined the prefix "be-" with "foran," meaning "in front" or "at the front." The "fore" element goes back to a Proto-Germanic form, "furai," which traces to an Indo-European root meaning "front," so the word's core idea of being ahead of something has stayed fixed for thousands of years. The meaning has moved mostly in one direction. Its earliest sense was spatial, placing one thing ahead of another, as in standing before a door. The sense of earlier in time developed from that same picture of ordering things along a line, so a moment that came first was figuratively "in front" of what followed. The word's near relatives in other Germanic languages show the same structure. German "bevor" and Low German "bevör" both mean "before," and Saterland Frisian "befoar" does too, which suggests the compound was shared across the Germanic family rather than unique to English.

Synonyms: prior, preceding

Antonyms: after, following