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Synonyms

previously

American  
[pree-vee-uhs-lee] / ˈpri vi əs li /

adverb

  1. before now; earlier.

    The evidence now shows a strong likelihood that sea levels will rise more rapidly than previously thought.

    The author was previously managing editor of a multimedia lifestyle company that produced a magazine, website, and newsletters.

Etymology

Origin of previously

previous ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

NLB, which is Slovenia’s largest lender and previously attempted to buy Addiko in 2024, said late Thursday that it now intends to offer 29.00 euros in cash for each Addiko share.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

She previously spoke to the BBC after reporting another police officer, former inspector Paul Whitehurst, of Warwickshire Police, for harassment.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

Melania Trump has previously pushed back against claims that Epstein was involved in introducing her and Donald Trump.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

The notion of having to seek permission or paying to use an international waterway that they previously used for free and without condition will stretch those states’ tolerance, Oxford Analytica said.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 9, 2026

With testimony distinguished from authority, what was previously authority became, in Glanvill’s words, simply ‘old and useless luggage’.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.