previous to

as in before
earlier than his passport arrived just previous to his trip

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of previous to In the four years previous to that Flamengo and Palmeiras dominated South American football winning two titles each. Joseph O'Sullivan, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024 Nine years previous to that, his Ghanaian parents Maria and Felix travelled overland, across the Sahara desert to the Spanish enclave of Melilla in north Africa, when Maria was pregnant with her first son Inaki (as the elder Williams sibling told The Athletic in an interview in 2022). Dermot Corrigan, The Athletic, 4 July 2024 The other alleged incident happened previous to the plaintiff’s full-time employment with Ye’s operations, which started in 2021. Dennis Romero, NBC News, 13 Oct. 2024 Chris Smither has been a longtime favorite of the EC-CHAP family, according to the organization’s assistant director, Ryan Elgin, who noted that efforts to schedule Smither began previous to the pandemic. Melanie Savage, Hartford Courant, 10 Feb. 2024 See All Example Sentences for previous to
Recent Examples of Synonyms for previous to
Preposition
  • One week before the Super Bowl, Beyoncé was awarded Album of the Year for the first time at the 2025 Grammy Awards for Cowboy Carter.
    Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 1 Mar. 2025
  • Shady spots need special shrubs and flowers; learn what grows best before planting. 33.
    Tom MacCubbin, Orlando Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2025
Preposition
  • The show, for the first time, was available for a livestream via Hulu, though the broadcast had some major technical issues and cut out early for many viewers, prior to the announcement of both Best Actress and Best Picture.
    Brian Welk, IndieWire, 4 Mar. 2025
  • Within the roughly one-minute teaser, the network dropped a quick preview of clips from The Bear, which was renewed for a fourth season prior to the season three premiere in June 2024.
    Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 4 Mar. 2025
Preposition
  • The number of banks insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. dropped by 21 to 4,517 during the third quarter of 2024, the latest period for which the FDIC has provided data.
    Russ Wiles, USA TODAY, 24 Feb. 2025
  • Kelly edged West Aurora’s Dominic Serio 4-3 in the finals, avenging a sectional loss a week earlier to Serio.
    Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 24 Feb. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Previous to.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/previous%20to. Accessed 8 Mar. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!