Early

/ˈɜːli/ · adjective

Meaning

At a time in advance of the usual or expected event..

Definitions by Sense

1. At a time in advance of the usual or expected event.
2. Arriving a time before expected; sooner than on time.
3. After but close to the start of a period of time.
4. In the starting hours of the day.
5. Having begun to occur; in its early stages.
6. (astronomy) Of a star or class of stars, hotter than the sun.
7. (informal) A shift (scheduled work period) that takes place early in the day.
8. At a time before expected; sooner than usual.

Example Sentences

at eleven, we went for an early lunch; she began reading at an early age; his mother suffered an early death

Floods in northern India, mostly in the small state of Uttarakhand, have wrought disaster on an enormous scale. The early, intense onset of the monsoon on June 14th swelled rivers, washing away roads, bridges, hotels and even whole villages. Rock-filled torrents smashed vehicles and homes, burying victims under rubble and sludge.

You're early today! I don't usually see you before nine o'clock.

The early guests sipped their punch and avoided each other's eyes.

The play "Two Gentlemen of Verona" is one of Shakespeare's early works.

Early results showed their winning 245 out of 300 seats in parliament. The main opponent locked up only 31 seats.

'Twas early June, the new grass was flourishing everywheres, the posies in the yard—peonies and such—in full bloom, the sun was shining, and the water of the bay was blue, with light green streaks where the shoal showed.

Dotcom mania was slow in coming to higher education, but now it has the venerable industry firmly in its grip. Since the launch early last year of Udacity and Coursera, two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations.

Synonyms for early

Antonyms for early

Related Words

Word Forms

• earlier
• earliest
• earlies

Usage Notes

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