earlier (
http://definr.com/earlier)
adj 1: occurring earlier in time; "on earlier occasions"
2: (comparative and superlative of `early') more early than;
most early; "a fashion popular in earlier times"; "his
earlier work reflects the influence of his teacher";
"Verdi's earliest and most raucous opera" [syn:
earliest]
adv 1: earlier in time; previously; "I had known her before"; "as I
said before"; "he called me the day before but your
call had come even earlier"; "her parents had died
four years earlier"; "I mentioned that problem
earlier" [syn:
before]
2: comparatives of `soon' or `early'; "Come a little sooner, if
you can"; "came earlier than I expected" [syn:
sooner]
3: before now; "why didn't you tell me in the first place?"
[syn:
in the first place,
in the beginning, {to begin
with},
originally]