before
Syllables: be·foreUK/bɪˈfɔː//bɪˈfoɹ/
before preposition: earlier than (in time).
Preposition
before
- Earlier than (in time).
- I want this done before Monday.
- We made an odd party before the arrival of the Ten, particularly when the Celebrity dropped in for lunch or dinner.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC
- Synonyms:
- by, no later than, previous to, prior to, ante, ere
- Antonyms:
- after, later than
- In front of in space.
- He stood before me.
- We sat before the fire to warm ourselves.
- Synonyms:
- ahead of, in front of
- Antonyms:
- behind
- In the presence of.
- He performed before the troops in North Africa.
- He spoke before a joint session of Congress.
- Under consideration, judgment, authority of (someone).
- The case laid before the panel aroused nothing but ridicule.
- If a suit be begun before an archdeacon[…]1726, John Ayliffe, Parergon Juris Canonici Anglicani
- In store for, in the future of (someone).
- Your whole life is before you.
- The golden age[…]is before us.1831, Thomas Carlyle, “The Phœnix”, in Sartor Resartus: The Life and Opinions of Herr Teufelsdröckh. […], London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, 3rd book, page 164
- In front of, according to a formal system of ordering items.
- In alphabetical order, "cat" comes before "dog", "canine" before feline".
- At a higher or greater position than, in a ranking.
- An entrepreneur puts market share and profit before quality, and amateur intrinsic qualities before economical considerations.
- He that cometh after me is preferred before me.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, John 1:15
Adverb
before (not comparable)
- At an earlier time.
- I've never done this before.
- This achievement far exceeded anything that had come before.
- Synonyms:
- previously
- Antonyms:
- after
- In advance in position or sequence; ahead.
- We walked behind while they went before.
- Synonyms:
- ahead
- At the front end.
- When people call this beast to mind,
They marvel more and more
At such a little tail behind,
So LARGE a trunk before.1896, Hilaire Belloc, “The Elephant”, in The Bad Child’s Book of Beasts
- When people call this beast to mind,
Conjunction
before
- In advance of the time when.
- Near-synonym: no later than
- Brush your teeth before you go to bed.
- Synonyms:
- no later than
- Antonyms:
- after
- Rather or sooner than.
- I'll die before I('ll) tell you anything about it.
- Synonyms:
- as soon as
Noun
before (plural befores)
- Of before-and-after images: the one that shows the difference before a specified treatment.
- On the left of the double column of photographs are the “befores.” Look at them! Fine boys all, yet here is an unformed mouth; there, a fine face just missing strength by a slight over-plumpness of feature; below, a clever face just a shade too “smart”; on the next page, a form too slight and...1918 April, “Before and After”, in Arthur Deerin Call, editor, Advocate of Peace, volume LXXX, number 4, Washington, D.C.: American Peace Society, →ISSN, →OCLC, “Editorial Notes” section, page 105...
- I told them that I was taking part in a ‘Before and After’ feature for the magazine. The beauty editor had picked a couple of girls in the office to experiment on. ‘I always think that the befores look better than the afters in that kind of experiment,’ Aunt G said.1973, Mary Lutyens, chapter 8, in Cleo, London: Michael Joseph, →ISBN, page 164
- That which occurred or existed previously.
- As all are commanded to yield like the mummy when the dung beetle rolls the sun / before all the befores of the trillion nights past night and day / though I knew that the broken receding mouth of the Sphinx had nothing to add / of resurrection in the history of its grimace.1982, Hugh Seidman, “Hymn”, in Throne/Falcon/Eye: Poems, New York, N.Y.: Random House, →ISBN; quoted in Michael Heller, “SEIDMAN, Hugh”, in James Vinson, D[aniel] L[ane] Kirkpatrick, editors...
- Your music has lasted since the beginning of the world. A stone was born in the waters. […] Voice rising to heaven, pure music, green primal root, mother-sea, before all the befores.1995, Maria Luisa Spaziani, translated by Laura Stortoni, “The Aegean”, in Sentry Towers, Berkeley, Calif.: Hesperia Press, →ISBN, page 41
- A previous form or instance.
- A big wind blew all their befores away. Impacted teeth grew over their names. Even the lines in their hands unraveled, these are the lines they stand in to ask for their hands back.1999 March, Julia Vinograd, “The Homeless”, in Street Spirit, volume 5, number 3, San Francisco, Calif.: American Friends Service Committee, →OCLC, page 13
- I guess I should have known from all the befores / that when it’s all said and done / I don’t want to be / I won’t stand to be / I refuse to be / anything but YOURS2006, Walee [pseudonym], “I Never Can Say Goodbye”, in What’s on the Menu? All of Me! Literary Entrees Prepared by Walee, Lincoln, Neb.: iUniverse, →ISBN, chapter 3, page 55
before meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu
before in Hindi
- earlier than
- ... से पहले ... se pahle
before in Tamil
- earlier than
- முன் muṉ, முன்பு muṉpu
- in front of in space
- முன் muṉ, முன்பு muṉpu, எதிரே etirē
- in the presence of
- முன் muṉ
- under consideration, judgment, authority of
- முன் muṉ
before in Marathi
- earlier than
- ...-च्या अगोदर ...-cyā agodar, ...-च्या आधी ...-cyā ādhī
before in Urdu
- earlier than
- ... سے پہلے ... se pahle
More languagesFewer languages
- before in Bengali
- আগে age
- before in Telugu
- ముందు mundu, ముందుగాల mundugāla, ఎదర edara
- before in Malayalam
- മുന്നെ munne, മുമ്പ് mumpŭ, മുന്നിൽ munnil, മുമ്പിൽ mumpil
- before in Sanskrit
- पुरा purā
- before in Sinhala
- ඉස්සර issara
- before in Arabic
- قَبْلَ qabla, أَمَامَ ʔamāma, قُدَّامَ quddāma, بَيْنَ يَدَيْ bayna yaday
- before in Malay
- sebelum, di depan
- before in Indonesian
- sebelum, di depan, dahulu
- before in Persian
- قبل qabl, پیش از piš az, قبل از qabl az
- before in Thai
- ก่อน gɔ̀ɔn, เมื่อก่อน mʉ̂ʉa-gɔ̀ɔn
- before in Vietnamese
- trước, trước khi, đằng trước, trước đây
- before in Myanmar
- ယခင် ya.hkang
- Dhivehi
- އިސް is
Examples of before in a sentence
- His angel, who shall go / Before them in a cloud and pillar of fire.1667, John Milton, “Book XII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert...
- There is an Eternity behind thee as well as one before.1905, Lord Dunsany [i.e., Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany], The Gods of Pegāna, London: [Charles] Elkin Mathews, […], →OCLC, page 76:
- Never before had he felt such repulsion when the vicar displayed his characteristic bluntness or coarseness of speech.1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
- But before this elaborate treatise can become of universal use and ornament to my native country, two points[…] are absolutely necessary.1731 (date written), Simon Wagstaff [pseudonym; Jonathan Swift], “An Introduction to the Following Treatise”, in A Complete Collection of...
Synonyms of before
2 more synonymsFewer synonyms
Antonyms
Forms of before
| Preposition | |
|---|---|
| alternative form | befo |
| alternative form | befo' |
| alternative Internet | b4 |
| alternative Internet | be4 |
| Noun | |
| plural | befores |
Origin of before
Inherited from Middle English before /bifore, from Old English beforan, from be- + foran (“before”), from fore, from Proto-Germanic *furai, from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“front”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian befoar (“before”), German Low German bevör (“before”), German bevor (“before”).
Words formed from before
- accessary before the fact
- accessory before the fact
- age before beauty
- a lie can run around the world before the truth can get its boots on
- before-and-after
- before and after
- beforecited
- before dark
- before GTA 6
- beforehand
- before image journal
- before it was cool
- before long
- beforely
- beforemath
- beforementioned
- before-mentioned
- beforenamed
- beforeness
- beforenoon
- before one can blink
- before one knows it
- before one knows where one is
- before one's eyes
- beforesaid
- before someone's time
- beforestated
- before the fact
- before the ink had time to dry
- before the ink was dry
- before the mast
- beforetime
- before times
- before you can say Jack Robinson
- before you can say knife
- best before
- best-before date
- best before date
- boldly go where no man has gone before
- bow down before the porcelain god
- bros before hoes
- bros before hos
- business before pleasure
- calm before the storm
- carry all before one
- carry everything before one
- carry the world before one
- cast pearls before swine
- check yourself before you wreck yourself
- chicks before dicks
- come before
- crawl before one can walk
- crawl before one walks
- cross a bridge before one comes to it
- day before yesterday
- dicks before chicks
- don't count your chickens before the eggs have hatched
- don't count your chickens before they're hatched
- don't count your chickens before they've hatched
- feels before reals
Phrases with before
- in before
- lay before
- leg before
- lie before
- put before
- ran before
- run before
- came before
- lain before
- lies before
- puts before
- runs before
108 more phrasesFewer phrases
- comes before
- kneel before
- knelt before
- lying before
- coming before
- kneels before
- putting before
- running before
- the day before
- kneeling before
- not before time
- hoes before bros
- land before time
- milk before meat
- time before time
- before and afters
- best before dates
- lands before time
- leg before wicket
- leg before wickets
- calms before storms
- pearls before swine
- tears before bedtime
- before image journals
- look before one leaps
- lull before the storm
- the mixture as before
- the night before last
- carried all before one
- carries all before one
- looks before one leaps
- misters before sisters
- sisters before misters
- carrying all before one
- crawls before one walks
- looked before one leapt
- looked before one leaped
- looking before one leaps
- pride goes before a fall
- casts pearls before swine
- crawled before one walked
- crawling before one walks
- jump before one is pushed
- pride comes before a fall
- pride goeth before a fall
- threw pearls before swine
- throw pearls before swine
- wrap it before you tap it
- i before e, except after c
- jumps before one is pushed
- pride cometh before a fall
- the same mixture as before
- thrown pearls before swine
- throws pearls before swine
- accessaries before the fact
- accessories before the fact
- pride comes before the fall
- pride wenteth before a fall
- carried the world before one
- carries the world before one
- jumped before one was pushed
- jumping before one is pushed
- throwing pearls before swine
- carried everything before one
- carries everything before one
- carrying the world before one
- it is darkest before the dawn
- put the cart before the horse
- carrying everything before one
- fingers were made before forks
- morning after the night before
- puts the cart before the horse
- you must spoil before you spin
- learn to walk before one can run
- one's father was born before one
- before you can say Jack Robertson
- learns to walk before one can run
- putting the cart before the horse
- bows down before the porcelain god
- it is darkest just before the dawn
- bowed down before the porcelain god
- know how to walk before one can run
- learning to walk before one can run
- learnt to walk before one could run
- bowing down before the porcelain god
- halloo before one is out of the wood
- it is always darkest before the dawn
- knows how to walk before one can run
- learned to walk before one could run
- halloos before one is out of the wood
- knew how to walk before one could run
- I've never heard it called that before
- knowing how to walk before one can run
- known how to walk before one could run
- hallooed before one was out of the wood
- hallooing before one is out of the wood
- boldly goes where no man has gone before
- boldly gone where no man has gone before
- boldly went where no man has gone before
- the darkest hour is just before the dawn
- boldly going where no man has gone before
- don't count your chicks before they hatch
- it is always darkest just before the dawn
- laugh before breakfast, cry before supper
- nothing is said that has not been said before
- don't count your chicks before they're hatched
- the darkest hour is always just before the dawn
- beer before liquor, never been sicker; liquor before beer, you're in the clear
Words that rhyme with before
48 more rhymesFewer rhymes
Questions about before
- What does before mean?
- Before means earlier than (in time).
- What is before in Hindi?
- Before in Hindi is ... से पहले (... se pahle). See Before meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use before in a sentence?
- His angel, who shall go / Before them in a cloud and pillar of fire.
- What part of speech is before?
- Before can be a preposition, an adverb, a conjunction or a noun.
- How do you pronounce before?
- Before is pronounced /bɪˈfɔː/ (UK).
Words near before in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: before (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-before.ogg.
Cite this entry: “before.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/before. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.