Before
Before adverb - So as to precede something in order of time.
Earlier than and before are semantically related. in prior to topic. In some cases you can use "Earlier than" instead the word "Before" as a preposition or an adjective or an adverb or a conjunction.
Earlier than
Before and earlier than are semantically related. You can use "Before" instead the phrase "Earlier than" as a preposition or an adjective or an adverb or a conjunction.
Mutual synonyms
Related pairs
- till and before
- till and earlier than
- since and before
- since and earlier than
- preceding and before
- preceding and earlier than
- in front of and before
- in front of and earlier than
- ahead of and before
- ahead of and earlier than
- prior to and before
- prior to and earlier than
- until and before
- until and earlier than
Both terms in one sentence
- Prior to the MSR, the Holy Sathu Commonwealth dominated, and before them the Axe-tail First Empire, and if anyone ruled earlier than that they've been lost to history.
- In the Death Note live-action films, Light Yagami dies much, much earlier than he did in the anime, on account of L writing his own name in the Death Note before Light can kill him, making his own death a certainty in 23 days but an impossibility at any time prior to that.
Source: Not His Sled - Another example is Sabrina, who popped up earlier than Butch and Cassidy and before J did.
Cite this Source
Earlier than and Before. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 31, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/before/earlier_than
Before & Earlier than. N.p., 2016. Web. 31 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/before/earlier_than>.
Earlier than or Before. 2016. Accessed July 31, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/before/earlier_than.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "before" and "earlier than" have occurred on timeline