Former Meaning
/ˈfɔɹmɚ/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjPrevious.
adjFirst of aforementioned two items. Used with the, often without a noun.
Sentence Examples
Kyoto was the former capital of Japan.
Fish and meat are both nourishing, but the latter is more expensive than the former.
The former president attended the opening ceremony yesterday.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ president of the company now works as a teacher.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She still keeps in touch with her ____ employer, who provided her with a great recommendation.
Word Origin & History
Inherited from Middle English former, comparative of forme (“first”), from Old English forma (“first”), descended from Proto-Germanic *frumô. Parallel to prior (via Latin), as comparative form from same Proto-Indo-European root. Related to first and fore (thence before), from Proto-Germanic.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"At half-past nine on this Saturday evening, the parlour of the Salutation Inn, High Holborn, contained most of its customary visitors.[…]In former days every tavern of repute kept such a room for its own select circle, a club, or society, of habitués, who met every evening, for a pipe and a cheerful glass."
— 1892, Walter Besant, chapter III, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC:
"The former-slaves-turned-abolitionists Quobna Ottobah Cugoano and Olaudah Equiano were the chief organizers of the Sons of Africa."
— 2007, Junius P. Rodriguez, Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World:
"Another ANC splinter party, the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK), led by former President Jacob Zuma appears to be on course to do well in KwaZulu-Natal, the eastern coastal province where Durban is located."
— 2024 May 30, Sarah Dean and David McKenzie, “First results in South Africa’s election suggest it is heading for biggest political shift since apartheid”, in CNN:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ president of the company now works as a teacher.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She still keeps in touch with her ____ employer, who provided her with a great recommendation.