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pre·vi·ous (prē′vē əs)

adjective

  1. occurring before in time or order; prior
  2. ☆ Informal too soon; premature

Etymology: L praevius < prae- (see pre-) + via, way (see via)

previous Related Forms
pre′·vi·ously adverb
previous Idioms

previous to

before

previous Synonyms

previous

modif.

  1. Earlier

    preceding, prior, antecedent, former, foregoing, earlier, past; see also former, preceding.

  2. *Too early

    premature, unfounded, unwarranted; see early 2.

previous generally implies a coming before in time or order a previous encounter; prior adds to this a connotation of greater importance or claim as a result of being first a prior commitment; preceding, esp. when used with the definite article, implies a coming immediately before the preceding night; antecedent often adds to the meaning of previous a connotation of direct causal relationship with what follows events antecedent to the war; foregoing applies specif. to something previously said or written the foregoing examples; former always connotes comparison, stated or implied, with what follows or is latter the former owner

previous Usage Examples

Modifies a noun

  • experience: Many of these are for people with previous relevant experience.
  • message: Powered by Outblaze Previous message: [ Full-disclosure ] Who Do I Contact?
  • year: Previous year 4 teams, 1 in top 20 fell away from 5th with a few weeks to go.
  • version: It is not blurred with color like the previous version.
  • conviction: More than one third of women in prison have no previous convictions.
  • chapter: Compare this with Moses Griffith's view in the previous chapter.

Modifying Another Word

  • however: Must be capable of the tasks mentioned however previous reception experience is not essential.

Used with adjective complement

  • have: Had left upper and lower jaw wisdom teeth extracted and molar which had previous ' expensive ' root canal work.
  • use: The new GroupWise Windows client version will be delivered with SOE v3 or as a point release for those using previous SOE versions.
  • possess: Applicants must possess previous Mortgage Underwriting experience, a minimum of 2 years and possess a current mortgage mandate.