Previously

How to spell previously

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce previously

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does previously mean?

1. adverbAt an earlier time; before the present moment or the event being described.

Previously in a sentence

• She had previously worked as an accountant before retraining as a lawyer.

• The report contradicts everything we were previously told about the budget.

Where does previously come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin praevius, meaning 'going before' or 'leading the way', which was assembled from prae 'before' and via 'way' or 'road'. The same via that means 'road' still survives in English words such as 'viaduct' and the everyday preposition 'via', meaning 'by way of'. From praevius English formed the adjective 'previous' in the early 1600s, meaning 'coming before in time', and the adverb 'previously' followed naturally by adding the familiar -ly ending. The spelling preserves the full -ous of 'previous' before the -ly is attached, so the trap is remembering the -ously cluster rather than writing 'previosly' or 'previousely'. Once you see that 'previously' is simply 'previous' plus '-ly', with no letters dropped, the spelling settles into place.

How the word is built

• pre- (before)
• via (way, road)
• -ous (adjective)
• -ly (adverb)