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beforehand

[ bih-fawr-hand, -fohr- ]

/ bɪˈfɔrˌhænd, -ˈfoʊr- /

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR beforehand ON THESAURUS.COM

adverb, adjective

in anticipation; in advance; ahead of time: We should have made reservations beforehand. I hope to be beforehand with my report.

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RELATED WORDS

earlier, sooner, ahead, advanced, already, ante, before, fore, precocious, previous, previously, antecedently

Nearby words

Origin of beforehand

First recorded in 1175–1225, beforehand is from the Middle English word bifor-hand. See before, hand

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for beforehand

In a series of meetings over the past year, Israel laid out to the U.S. beforehand what would trigger a strike in Syria.
Israel’s Red Line Crossed, U.S. Tacitly Backs Ally’s Strikes in Syria|Eli Lake|May 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Cheap gas has also rendered government-preferred energy sources like solar even more uneconomic than they were beforehand.
David's Bookclub: The New New Deal|David Frum|December 1, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Gilligan: That was an idea that we had many months beforehand.
‘Breaking Bad’: Bryan Cranston, Vince Gilligan, Emmy Nominations|Maria Elena Fernandez|September 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And up until two hours beforehand, he was in the hospital with a kidney stone.
Vicki Kennedy Remembers Ted Kennedy at the DNC|Lloyd Grove|September 5, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Though his performance went off without a hitch, Rogan was characteristically self-deprecating about it beforehand.
Austrian Markus Rogan: Olympic Swimming’s Dark Horse|Robin Arzón|July 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
My reason for not telling you beforehand is that you would not have allowed me to go.
The Poison Tree|Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Nature has marked out the path for us beforehand; there are snares in it, but also primroses, and it leads to peace.
Some Turns of Thought in Modern Philosophy|George Santayana
It was not known to him beforehand whether his destination lay north, south, east, or west.
The Petticoat Commando|Johanna Brandt
"It may be that our coming has been foretold him beforehand," said Heregar.
King Alfred's Viking|Charles W. Whistler
He consoled himself with the reflection, however, that nobody had told him so beforehand.
The Day of Wrath|Maurus Jkai

British Dictionary definitions for beforehand

beforehand

/ (bɪˈfɔːˌhænd) /

adjective, adverb (postpositive)

early; in advance; in anticipationshe came an hour beforehand

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

Word Origin and History for beforehand

beforehand

adv., adj.

also before-hand, early 13c., from before + hand, which here is of uncertain signification, unless the original notion is payment in advance or something done before another's hand does it. Hyphenated from 18c., one word from 19c.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper