prior

1
[ prahy-er ]
See synonyms for prior on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. preceding in time or in order; earlier or former; previous: A prior agreement prevents me from accepting this.

  2. preceding in importance or privilege.

noun
  1. Informal. a prior conviction.

Idioms about prior

  1. prior to, preceding; before: Prior to that time, buffalo had roamed the Great Plains in tremendous numbers.

Origin of prior

1
First recorded in 1705–15; from Latin: “former, elder, superior” (adjective), “before” (adverb); akin to pre-, prime

Other words for prior

Other words from prior

  • pri·or·ly, adverb

Words Nearby prior

Other definitions for prior (2 of 3)

prior2
[ prahy-er ]

noun
  1. an officer in a monastic order or religious house, sometimes next in rank below an abbot.

  2. a chief magistrate, as in the medieval republic of Florence.

Origin of prior

2
First recorded before 1100; Middle English, late Old English, from Medieval Latin, Late Latin: “one superior in rank”; noun use of prior prior1

Other words from prior

  • pri·or·ship, noun
  • sub·pri·or·ship, noun

Other definitions for Prior (3 of 3)

Prior
[ prahy-er ]

noun
  1. Matthew, 1664–1721, English poet.

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How to use prior in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for prior (1 of 3)

prior1

/ (ˈpraɪə) /


adjective
  1. (prenominal) previous; preceding

  2. prior to before; until

noun
  1. statistics a prior probability

Origin of prior

1
C18: from Latin: previous

British Dictionary definitions for prior (2 of 3)

prior2

/ (ˈpraɪə) /


noun
  1. the superior of a house and community in certain religious orders

  2. the deputy head of a monastery or abbey, ranking immediately below the abbot

  1. (formerly) a chief magistrate in medieval Florence and other Italian republics

Origin of prior

2
C11: from Late Latin: head, from Latin (adj): previous, from Old Latin pri before

British Dictionary definitions for Prior (3 of 3)

Prior

/ (ˈpraɪə) /


noun
  1. Matthew. 1664–1721, English poet and diplomat, noted for his epigrammatic occasional verse

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012