Prior vs Upon - What's the difference?
prior | upon |
Of that which comes before, in advance.
former, previous
A high-ranking member of a monastery, usually lower in rank than an abbot.
* 1939 , (Raymond Chandler), The Big Sleep , Penguin 2011, p. 53:
(statistics) In Bayesian inference, a prior probability distribution.
Being above and in contact with another.
:
*{{quote-book, year=1899, author=(Hughes Mearns)
, title=
, passage=Yesterday, upon the stair / I met a man who wasn’t there / He wasn’t there again today / I wish, I wish he’d go away …}}
Being directly supported by another.
:
:
Being followed by another so as to form a series.
:
At a prescribed point in time.
:
.
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=5
, passage=Although the Celebrity was almost impervious to sarcasm, he was now beginning to exhibit visible signs of uneasiness, the consciousness dawning upon him that his eccentricity was not receiving the ovation it merited.}}
*
*:Little disappointed, then, she turned attention to "Chat of the Social World," gossip which exercised potent fascination upon the girl's intelligence.
Being the target of an action.
Incidental to a specified point in time or order of action; usually combined with here-, there- or where-.
As adverbs the difference between prior and upon
is that prior is previously while upon is being the target of an action.As an adjective prior
is of that which comes before, in advance.As a noun prior
is a high-ranking member of a monastery, usually lower in rank than an abbot.As a preposition upon is
being above and in contact with another.prior
English
Adjective
(-)- I had no prior knowledge you were coming.
- His prior residence was smaller than his current one.
Usage notes
The etymological antonym is (m) (from Latin) (compare (m)/(m) for “first/last”). This is now no longer used, however, and there is no corresponding antonym. Typically either (m) or (m) are used, but these form different pairs – (m)/(m) and (m)/(m) – and are more formal than prior . When an opposing pair is needed, these can be used, or other pairs such as (m)/(m) or (m)/(m).Synonyms
* See alsoDerived terms
* prior toNoun
(wikipedia prior) (en noun)- ‘And a little later we get the routine report on his prints from Washington, and he's got a prior back in Indiana, attempted hold-up six years ago.’
upon
English
Alternative forms
* vpon (obsolete)Preposition
(English prepositions)Usage notes
A somewhat elevated word; the simpler, more general term on is generally interchangeable, and more common in casual American speech. In poetic or legal contexts, upon is common.Synonyms
* (all senses) on * (time) atAdverb
(-)- He was set upon by the agitated dogs
- The clock struck noon, whereupon the students proceeded to lunch.