hitherto
Americanadverb
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up to this time; until now.
a fact hitherto unknown.
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to here.
adverb
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until this time
hitherto, there have been no problems
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archaic to this place or point
adjective
Etymology
Origin of hitherto
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English hiderto; see hither, to
Explanation
Use the adverb hitherto when you're describing a state or circumstance that existed up until now. If you find a hitherto undiscovered hidden tunnel in your cellar, you're the first to discover it. When some particular situation has existed so far, up until the moment that you're speaking of, you can use the word hitherto to talk about it. You could say that you're taking a hot air balloon ride that you were hitherto too scared to contemplate, or that a very shy girl in your philosophy class who was hitherto totally silent finally spoke up today and asked a very intelligent question.
Vocabulary lists containing hitherto
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
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Sapiens
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Tolkien Reading Day, List 2
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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.
For Boeing, a company already reeling from years of safety scandals, it is about the integrity of one of its premium products: the 787 Dreamliner, an aircraft with a hitherto impeccable safety record.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
The source said Meloni would meet with officials from Saudi Arabia, as well as from Qatar and United Arab Emirates on what had been a hitherto unannounced trip.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
To their initial astonishment, they have attracted a far wider viewership spanning all ages, even followers who hitherto had only scant interest in ballet.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026
Karl Marx asserted that “philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world . . . the point, however, is to change it.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026
Mrs. Pontellier was not a woman given to con-fidences, a characteristic hitherto contrary to her nature.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
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.
