early
adverb
in or during the first part of a period of time, a course of action, a series of events, etc..
early
1 American
[ur-lee]
/ ˈɜr li /
adverb
earlier,
earliest
-
in or during the first part of a period of time, a course of action, a series of events, etc..
early in the year.
-
in the early part of the morning.
to get up early.
-
before the usual or appointed time; ahead of time.
They came early and found their hosts still dressing.
-
far back in time.
The Greeks early learned to sail and navigate.
adjective
-
earlier,
comparative
-
earliest
superlative
-
occurring in the first part of a period of time, a course of action, a series of events, etc..
an early hour of the day.
- Synonyms:
- initial
-
occurring before the usual or appointed time.
an early dinner.
- Synonyms:
- premature, beforehand
-
belonging to a period far back in time.
early French architecture.
-
occurring in the near future.
I look forward to an early reply.
-
(of a fruit or vegetable) appearing or maturing before most others of its type.
early apples.
noun
-
earlies
plural
idioms
Early
2
American
[ur-lee]
/ ˈɜr li /
noun
early
British
/ ˈɜːlɪ /
adjective
-
before the expected or usual time
-
occurring in or characteristic of the first part of a period or sequence
-
occurring in or characteristic of a period far back in time
-
occurring in the near future
-
not before the time or date mentioned
-
too soon to tell how things will turn out
adverb
-
before the expected or usual time
-
near the first part of a period or sequence
I was talking to him earlier
early
More Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of early
First recorded before 950; Middle English erlich (adjective), erliche (adverb), Old English ǣrlīc, ǣrlīce, variant of ārlīc, ārlīce, from ār “soon, early” ( see ere) + līc(e) -ly
Explanation
Something that's early happens right at the beginning of some specific time period, or before you expect it to happen. An early party guest shows up before the party starts. An early riser gets up with the sun every morning, and you might eat an early dinner at five in the evening. If you're in your early twenties, you're closer to 20 than 30, while the early 20th century was the time period before 1950. If a baby comes early, she's born before her expected due date. The Old English source is ærlice, "early," which comes from ær, "soon" or "ere."
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.
See Examples For:
In the early 1960s, brothers Cecil and Bobby Womack performed together in the Valentinos, whose biggest hit, “It’s All Over Now,” was covered by the Rolling Stones in 1964.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
This program is still in the very early stages, with more guidance coming in the next few months.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
Her credits from the late 1990s and early 2000s also included roles in the animated film A Bug's Life, as well as TV shows Ally McBeal and Malcolm in the Middle.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Lawmakers are now considering rival proposals for drone investment worth billions of dollars that could be passed as early as this week.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
I wondered if she would say anything about leaving school early.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
Early retirees can be particularly good at this.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
Early this month, a dejected Betts had as tough a time explaining to reporters why, despite hitting the ball hard and stacking disciplined at-bats, he’d had little to show for it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
Early in her acting career, Davis appeared in an episode of The Detectives, the BBC comedy starring her father, and a 1995 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Early attempts to present real events on celluloid sometimes combined on-the-scene footage with staged reconstructions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Early one morning, the sisters, their supporters, and David went out to the old family cottage.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
"The later crops, the second earlies, are more a concern, because they're at tuber initiation stage," he said.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2023
Circumcising babies when they are at their earlies stage of development-imprinting every experience- is bad medicine.
From Scientific American ● Mar. 12, 2012
After Panetta met with the Washington Post’s David Ignatius earlies this month, the columnist wrote that “Panetta believes there is a strong likelihood that Israel will strike Iran in April, May or June.”
From Time ● Feb. 23, 2012
If you, like me, have long been befuddled by potato planting classifications – earlies, second earlies, maincrop, lates – this podcast is revelatory.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 2, 2010
For the ultimate in earlies I suggest Red Gold.
From Gardening Without Irrigation: or without much, anyway by Steve Solomon
Like a mass awakening, labels and executives began courting them, making offers that were unimaginable just a few years earlier.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Mundubile had earlier claimed victory and alleged there were voting irregularities.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Musk touted his plan to build the 100-million-square-foot facility on X earlier this month, calling it “the largest and most valuable building on Earth by far.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
The average hourly wage for a U.S. warehouse worker rose to $26.85 in June, up about 5% from 2025 and 41% from 10 years earlier, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Jonah woke up earlier than he usually did on a Saturday, probably because Katherine was already up and banging around in the bathroom.
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
U.S. carriers aren’t scheduled to resume services to Israel until the fall at the earliest, meaning that Americans have to find other ways to get there, often transiting through Europe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
This is not expected to be the case until Friday at the earliest.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Many physicists see this breakdown as evidence that existing theories do not provide a complete description of the Universe at its earliest stage.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
Still, it’s worth comparing your estimated benefits at your earliest claiming age, full retirement age, and age 70.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
In the earliest age of the gods, existence was born from non-existence.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
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.
