EARLY • DICTIONARY ONE.COM • Definition of Early

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/ˈərli/ Listen

Early

adjective

(compar. earlier; superl. earliest)

1.

At or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time. "An early warning" , "Early diagnosis" , "An early death" , "Took early retirement" , "An early spring" , "Early varieties of peas and tomatoes mature before most standard varieties"

2.

Being or occurring at an early stage of development. "Early forms of life" , "Early man" , "An early computer"

3.

Belonging to the distant past. Synonyms: former, other. "Former generations" , "In other times"

4.

Very young.

5.

Of an early stage in the development of a language or literature. "Early Modern English is represented in documents printed from 1476 to 1700"

6.

Expected in the near future.

adverb

1.

During an early stage. Synonym: early on.

2.

Before the usual time or the time expected. Synonyms: ahead of time, too soon. "The house was completed ahead of time"

3.

In good time. Synonym: betimes.

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WordNet 3.0 © 2010 Princeton University

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"Early" Quotes from Famous Books

... shore first," Violet decreed. "Mrs. Briggs won't be expecting us so early. I hear that some more of the Priory land has been slipping into the sea. We ...

— The Keeper of the Door • Ethel M. Dell

... a fork like it. Le Menil confessed that he had no taste for such things, but said that his aunt knew a great deal about them. At Caen all the merchants knew her. She had restored and furnished her house in proper style. This house was noted as early as 1690. In one of its halls were white cases full of books. His aunt had wished to put them in order. She had found frivolous books in them, ornamented with engravings so unconventional ...

— The Red Lily, Complete • Anatole France

... not completed his seventeenth year, when the Swedish throne became vacant by the death of his father. But the early maturity of his genius enabled the Estates to abridge in his favour the legal period of minority. With a glorious conquest over himself he commenced a reign which was to have victory for its constant attendant, a career which was to begin and end in ...

— The Works of Frederich Schiller in English • Frederich Schiller

... was too late; the master's door was locked. It was a bright, cold day with strong sunlight; Maurice's eyes ached, and he shrank from the wind at every corner. Instead of going home, he went to Madeleine's room and sat down to wait for her. She had evidently been away since early morning; the piano was dusty and unopened; the blind at the head of it had not been drawn up. It was a pleasant dusk; he put his arms on the table, his head on his arms, and, in spite of his anxiety, fell ...

— Maurice Guest • Henry Handel Richardson

... persecution of the opposite creed He would have no Calvinist inquisition set up in its place He had never enjoyed social converse, except at long intervals He knew men, especially he knew their weaknesses He had omitted to execute heretics Heresy was a plant of early growth in the Netherlands His imagination may have assisted his memory in the task His personal graces, for the moment, took the rank of virtues History shows how feeble are barriers of paper Holland, England, and America, are all links ...

— Quotations From John Lothrop Motley • David Widger

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