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Before   /bɪfˈɔr/  /bˌifˈɔr/   Listen
preposition
Before  prep.  
1.
In front of; preceding in space; ahead of; as, to stand before the fire; before the house. "His angel, who shall go Before them in a cloud and pillar of fire."
2.
Preceding in time; earlier than; previously to; anterior to the time when; sometimes with the additional idea of purpose; in order that. "Before Abraham was, I am." "Before this treatise can become of use, two points are necessary." Note: Formerly before, in this sense, was followed by that. "Before that Philip called thee... I saw thee."
3.
An advance of; farther onward, in place or time. "The golden age... is before us."
4.
Prior or preceding in dignity, order, rank, right, or worth; rather than. "He that cometh after me is preferred before me." "The eldest son is before the younger in succession."
5.
In presence or sight of; face to face with; facing. "Abraham bowed down himself before the people." "Wherewith shall I come before the Lord?"
6.
Under the cognizance or jurisdiction of. "If a suit be begun before an archdeacon."
7.
Open for; free of access to; in the power of. "The world was all before them where to choose."
Before the mast (Naut.), as a common sailor, because the sailors live in the forecastle, forward of the foremast.
Before the wind (Naut.), in the direction of the wind and by its impulse; having the wind aft.


adverb
Before  adv.  
1.
On the fore part; in front, or in the direction of the front; opposed to in the rear. "The battle was before and behind."
2.
In advance. "I come before to tell you."
3.
In time past; previously; already. "You tell me, mother, what I knew before."
4.
Earlier; sooner than; until then. "When the butt is out, we will drink water; not a drop before." Note: Before is often used in self-explaining compounds; as, before-cited, before-mentioned; beforesaid.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Before" Quotes from Famous Books



... philosopher. Cicero had been his pupil in his boyhood, and gave him a home till the day of his death, "I learned many things from him, logic especially." In old age he lost his sight. "Yet," says his pupil, "he devoted himself to study even more diligently than before; he had books read to him night and day. These were studies which he could pursue without his eyes; but he also, and this seems almost incredible, taught geometry without them, instructing his learners whence and whither the line was to be drawn, ...
— Roman life in the days of Cicero • Alfred J[ohn] Church
... act upon this, and lay his case before Bishop Borzoi even without the introduction he had hoped for. Fortunately he still had some sheets of Beagle and Company notepaper, with the engraved lettering and Office of the General Manager embossed thereon. He was in some doubt as to the proper ...
— Where the Blue Begins • Christopher Morley
... the equator, a committee of strong-arm men baptized those of the passengers who had never before crossed the line. Those who had crossed the line entered into the fun of the occasion with much spirit ...
— In Africa - Hunting Adventures in the Big Game Country • John T. McCutcheon
... the river we arrived, at nine in the morning, before the mouth of the Meta, opposite the spot where the Mission of Santa Teresa, founded by the Jesuits, ...
— Equinoctial Regions of America V2 • Alexander von Humboldt
... set to work to unpack a little, and make the sitting-room look the least bit more home-like; then I laid the cloth for breakfast, put out the pie and potted meat, etc. (no words can say how heartily tired of pies we both were before the week was over), and arranged everything for breakfast. Then I waylaid one of the numerous stray "hands" which hang about a station at shearing time, and got him to fetch me a couple of buckets of water as far as the verandah. These I conveyed ...
— Station Amusements • Lady Barker


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