earlier

(s) (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
earliest,
(r) 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
before,
(r) comparatives of "soon" or "early"
- Come a little sooner, if you can
- came earlier than I expected
sooner,
(r) before now
- why didn't you tell me in the first place?
in the first place, to begin with, in the beginning, originally,

earliest before sooner in the first place to begin with in the beginning originally