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Ahead vs Previous - What's the difference?

ahead | previous |

As an adverb ahead

is in or to the front; in advance; onward.

As an adjective previous is

prior; occurring before something else, either in time or order.

As a noun previous is

an existing criminal record; short for "previous convictions".

ahead

English

Adverb

(-)
  • In or to the front; in advance; onward.
    • The island bore but a little ahead of us. --Fielding.
  • Having progressed more.
    • He is far ahead of his class in math.
  • In the direction one is facing or moving.
    • Just ahead you can see the cliffs.
  • in the future, preceding
  • *{{quote-news, date = 21 August 2012
    • , first = Ed , last = Pilkington , title = Death penalty on trial: should Reggie Clemons live or die? , newspaper = The Guardian , url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/aug/21/death-penalty-trial-reggie-clemons?newsfeed=true , page = , passage = The Reggie Clemons case has been a cause of legal dispute for the past two decades. Prosecutors alleged that he and his co-defendants brutally cut short the lives of Julie and Robin Kerry, sisters who had just started college and had their whole adult lives ahead of them. }}

    Derived terms

    * ahead of one's time * get ahead of oneself * straight ahead

    Antonyms

    * (nautical) astern * behind

    Anagrams

    *

    previous

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (archaic)

    Adjective

    (-)
  • Prior; occurring before something else, either in time or order.
  • * Thomson
    • The dull sound previous to the storm, / Rolls o'er the muttering earth.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham)
    • , title=(The China Governess) , chapter=Foreword citation , passage=He stood transfixed before the unaccustomed view of London at night time, a vast panorama which reminded him […] of some wood engravings far off and magical, in a printshop in his childhood. They dated from the previous century and were coarsely printed on tinted paper, with tinsel outlining the design.}}
    He is no better than the previous Prime Minister.
  • (informal)  Premature; occurring too soon.
    • I thought that I had solved the problem, but I was a bit previous .

    Synonyms

    * former * late * old * See also

    Antonyms

    * future * following * next * succeeding

    Noun

    (-)
  • (informal, UK) An existing criminal record; short for "previous convictions".
    • It turned out the shoplifter had a lot of previous .
  • * November 2 2014 , Daniel Taylor, " Sergio Agüero strike wins derby for Manchester City against 10-man United," guardian.co.uk
    • For that Smalling will have to do his time grazing in the scapegoat’s paddock because his contribution here supplied hard evidence of a player lacking the football intelligence that is needed at the highest level. He has previous on that front and it is difficult to find any mitigation for the way he scythed down James Milner when the first rule for a defender on a yellow card is not to dive in unless it is absolutely necessary.

    Anagrams

    * *