former
1 of 2adjective
for·mer ˈfȯr-mər 
1
a
: coming before in time
She now appears like her former self.
b
: of, relating to, or occurring in the past
former correspondence
restoring the theater to its former glory
2
: preceding in place or arrangement : foregoing
the former part of the chapter
3
: first in order of two or more things cited or understood
of the two given, the former spelling is more common
of the two spellings, the former is more common
4
: having been previously : onetime
a former athlete
her former husband
former
2 of 2noun
form·er ˈfȯr-mər
1
: one that forms
2
chiefly British : a member of a school form —usually used in combination
sixth former
Synonyms
Adjective
- erstwhile
- late
- old
- once
- onetime
- other
- past
- quondam
- sometime
- whilom
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Adjective the coach is a former professional baseball player the former manual had some errors, but the current version has its own problems
Recent Examples on the Web
Jennifer Aldrich, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Sep. 2022 Frost, who grew up 90 minutes west of Lincoln in Wood River, was hailed as a savior of the program when former athletic director Bill Moos signed him to a seven-year, $35 million contract. Eric Olson, ajc, 11 Sep. 2022 The former public-school band director was nearing the end of his life because of Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia, and Covid-19 hastened his death, his son Peter Spicer said. Jon Kamp, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2022 Guida, the former Firearms Records Bureau director, said the lack of enforcement over time has sent a clear message to gun dealers. Andrew Brinker, BostonGlobe.com, 10 Sep. 2022 The 108-page lawsuit, filed in March, claimed that Clinton, former FBI Director James Comey and other top Clinton and FBI officials schemed together to accuse Trump of colluding with Russia to win the 2016 election. Ella Lee, USA TODAY, 10 Sep. 2022 Andrés Arauz doesn’t fit the bill of a typical former central bank director. Leo Schwartz, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2022 The former Utah Public Health Laboratory Director, raised concerns early in the coronavirus pandemic about problems with COVID-19 tests by Nomi Health and Co-Diagnostics. USA Today, 8 Sep. 2022 The Cleveland Cavaliers are making minor changes to their coaching staff this coming season, with former director of player development Mike Gerrity being named head coach of the Cleveland Charge -- the organization’s G League affiliate. Chris Fedor, cleveland, 8 Sep. 2022 Maria Perez, USA TODAY, 21 July 2022 The former made a surprise appearance supporting his cousin during the last moments of the show, where the two artists rapped along to some of Baby Keem’s songs. Uvie Bikomo, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2022 The former comes with six Xe-cores and six ray-tracing units. Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 30 Mar. 2022 If Anything Happens — the former follows a gay Afghan refugee’s journey to Europe as a teenager and the latter is about parents grieving the loss of a child killed in a school shooting — were not the easiest sales to publishers. Mia Galuppo, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2022 It's been a close race between Kodi Smit-McPhee and Troy Kotsur, and more branch-hopping support for Dog versus CODA was thought to work in the former's favor at one point. Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 8 Mar. 2022 The former seemed to rise up for a floater, but instead pushed a lob to the center, who threw it down. Eric Walden, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 Feb. 2022 Meanwhile, Maluma and Kardashian's ex Scott Disick started a fake argument over Twitter to promote the former's latest music video. Heran Mamo, Billboard, 9 July 2021 The former comes with 256 gigabytes of storage while the latter has 512 gigabytes, but both are foldable and include a full HD display. Nina Huang, PEOPLE.com, 22 June 2021 See More
Adjective
The Starbucks Medicine Ball is a favorite beverage of many Starbucks drinkers, including Rachel Weber, former digital editorial director at Better Homes & Gardens. Jennifer Aldrich, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Sep. 2022 Frost, who grew up 90 minutes west of Lincoln in Wood River, was hailed as a savior of the program when former athletic director Bill Moos signed him to a seven-year, $35 million contract. Eric Olson, ajc, 11 Sep. 2022 The former public-school band director was nearing the end of his life because of Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia, and Covid-19 hastened his death, his son Peter Spicer said. Jon Kamp, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2022 Guida, the former Firearms Records Bureau director, said the lack of enforcement over time has sent a clear message to gun dealers. Andrew Brinker, BostonGlobe.com, 10 Sep. 2022 The 108-page lawsuit, filed in March, claimed that Clinton, former FBI Director James Comey and other top Clinton and FBI officials schemed together to accuse Trump of colluding with Russia to win the 2016 election. Ella Lee, USA TODAY, 10 Sep. 2022 Andrés Arauz doesn’t fit the bill of a typical former central bank director. Leo Schwartz, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2022 The former Utah Public Health Laboratory Director, raised concerns early in the coronavirus pandemic about problems with COVID-19 tests by Nomi Health and Co-Diagnostics. USA Today, 8 Sep. 2022 The Cleveland Cavaliers are making minor changes to their coaching staff this coming season, with former director of player development Mike Gerrity being named head coach of the Cleveland Charge -- the organization’s G League affiliate. Chris Fedor, cleveland, 8 Sep. 2022 Noun
In April, the USA TODAY Network exposed links to two Georgia Department of Labor officials – one then current, the other former – who had been charged with protecting migrant farmworkers. Maria Perez, USA TODAY, 21 July 2022 The former made a surprise appearance supporting his cousin during the last moments of the show, where the two artists rapped along to some of Baby Keem’s songs. Uvie Bikomo, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2022 The former comes with six Xe-cores and six ray-tracing units. Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 30 Mar. 2022 If Anything Happens — the former follows a gay Afghan refugee’s journey to Europe as a teenager and the latter is about parents grieving the loss of a child killed in a school shooting — were not the easiest sales to publishers. Mia Galuppo, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2022 It's been a close race between Kodi Smit-McPhee and Troy Kotsur, and more branch-hopping support for Dog versus CODA was thought to work in the former's favor at one point. Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 8 Mar. 2022 The former seemed to rise up for a floater, but instead pushed a lob to the center, who threw it down. Eric Walden, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 Feb. 2022 Meanwhile, Maluma and Kardashian's ex Scott Disick started a fake argument over Twitter to promote the former's latest music video. Heran Mamo, Billboard, 9 July 2021 The former comes with 256 gigabytes of storage while the latter has 512 gigabytes, but both are foldable and include a full HD display. Nina Huang, PEOPLE.com, 22 June 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English, from forme first, from Old English forma — more at foremost
First Known Use
Adjective
12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing former
Kids Definition
former
adjective
for·mer ˈfȯr-mər
: coming before in time
a former president
former
adjective
1
as in erstwhile
having been such at some previous time the coach is a former professional baseball player Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- erstwhile
- old
- other
- late
- past
- defunct
- onetime
- once
- quondam
- whilom
- sometime
- departed
- bygone
- vanished
- long-ago
- extinct
- expired
- gone
- dead
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- current
- present
- contemporary
- prospective
- extant
- ongoing
- future
- present-day
- unborn
- coming
2
as in previous
going before another in time or order the former manual had some errors, but the current version has its own problems Synonyms & Similar Words
- previous
- preceding
- earliest
- antecedent
- early
- precedent
- prior
- initial
- anterior
- original
- foregoing
- pioneer
- erstwhile
- premature
- inaugural
- first
- advance
- preexisting
- preliminary
- introductory
- maiden
- whilom
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- subsequent
- following
- later
- latter
- posterior
- after
- succeeding
- ensuing
- late
- last
- advanced
- final
- latest
- ultimate
- terminal
- concluding
- closing
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of former are antecedent, anterior, foregoing, preceding, previous, and prior. While all these words mean "being before," former implies always a definite comparison or contrast with something that is latter.
the former name of the company
The synonyms antecedent and former are sometimes interchangeable, but antecedent applies to order in time and may suggest a causal relation.
conditions antecedent to the revolution
The meanings of anterior and former largely overlap; however, anterior applies to position before or ahead of usually in space, sometimes in time or order.
the anterior lobe of the brain
The words foregoing and former are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, foregoing applies chiefly to statements.
the foregoing remarks
While the synonyms preceding and former are close in meaning, preceding usually implies being immediately before in time or in place.
the preceding sentence
Both previous and prior imply existing or occurring earlier, but prior often adds an implication of greater importance.
a child from a previous marriage
a prior obligation