Synonyms for early

Another word for early is first, previous or earlier. Below are 42 synonyms across 9 senses, with antonyms.

1. adjective: at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time

first synonyms
previous synonyms
earlier synonyms
advance synonyms
earliest synonyms
wee synonyms
aboriginal synonyms
premature synonyms
beforehand synonyms
primal synonyms
proto
untimely synonyms
primordial synonyms
primeval
proterozoic
archean
archaean
azoic
earlyish
archeozoic
archaeozoic
primaeval

Antonyms

late synonyms
middle synonyms

2. adjective: being or occurring at an early stage of development

new synonyms
young synonyms
rude synonyms
crude synonyms
primitive synonyms
archaic synonyms
embryonic synonyms
precocious
incipient
inchoate
embryotic

Antonyms

late synonyms

3. adjective: belonging to the distant past

4. adjective: very young

young synonyms
immature synonyms

5. adjective: of an early stage in the development of a language or literature

Antonyms

late synonyms
middle synonyms

6. adjective: expected in the near future

future synonyms

7. adverb: during an early stage

early on

8. adverb: before the usual time or the time expected

too soon
ahead of time

Antonyms

late synonyms

9. adverb: in good time

betimes

Early in word games

Letters: 5
Scrabble: 8
Words With Friends: 8
How common: Everyday word

Questions people ask

What is another word for early?

You can say first, previous, earlier, advance or earliest instead of early. Which one fits depends on the sense; the first sense above means "at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time".

What is the opposite of early?

The opposite of early is late or middle.

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Senses and synonyms from Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0); the most common words come first. Browse more on the synonyms and antonyms hub.