before meaning and definition

BEFORE adverb

Definition of before (adverb)

1. earlier in time; previously
   • "I had known her before"; "as I said before"; "he called me the day before but your call had come even earlier"; "her parents had died four years earlier"; "I mentioned that problem earlier"
   • synonyms: earlier
2. at or in the front
   • "I see the lights of a town ahead"; "the road ahead is foggy"; "staring straight ahead"; "we couldn't see over the heads of the people in front"; "with the cross of Jesus marching on before"
   • synonyms: ahead, in front