afore, adv., prep., and conj.
(əˈfɔə(r))
Forms: 1 onforan (2–3 onforen, aforen), ? 3–4 aforn, 4–5 afforn(e, 4–6 aforne, 4 affore, 5– afore.
[OE. on foran = on, prep. + foran, itself an adv. = in front, in advance, properly dative of for, used as adj. or n.; cf. æt-foran, be-foran, to-foran. The OE. on foran is not of frequent occurrence, and it was only in 14th c. that aforn, afore, became common, taking the place of the simple forn, fore, OE. foran, fore. Afore may also in some cases represent atfore, OE. ætforan which survived to 1300. By restriction to an object afore became a preposition, and by ellipsis of a relative a prepositional conjunction. Afore is now mostly obsolete in literature, its place being taken by before; but it is retained in the Bible and Prayer-book, is common in the dialects generally, as well as in ‘vulgar’ London speech, and in nautical language. Cf. also pinafore.]
A. adv.
1. Of place: In front, in advance; in or into the fore-part. Still used in naut. lang. and in dialects.
| a 1000 Ags. Ps. cxiii. 13 (cxv. 5) Beoð onforan eáᵹan, ne maᵹon feor ᵹeseon. a 1400 Leg. Rood 150 And prikkede into his panne Boþe byhynde and aforn. c 1430 Lydg. Minor Poems (1840) 4 Alle clad in white, and the most principalle Afforne in reed. 1489 Caxton Faytes of Armes i. ix. 23 They shuld sett theyre lifte foete a-fore. 1523 Ld. Berners Froissart I. cccl. 561 Sirs, on afore to these false traytours. 1581 T. Nuce Seneca's Octavia 166 Light ashes easly puft aforne. 1655 Digges Compl. Ambass. 357 Methinks it is somewhat requisite you did send one afore. 1677 Lond. Gaz. mcxciv/4 Having two Guns, one afore, and the other abaft. 1769 Falconer Shipwreck iii. 118 While Rodmond, fearful of some neighbouring shore, Cries ever and anon, ‘Loke out afore!’ 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk. 24 Afore..opposed to abaft and signifying that part of the ship which lies forward, or near the stem. Afore, the same as before the mast. |
2. Of time: In time preceding or previous; previously, before. arch. but common dial.
| 1340 Ayenb. 271 [Hit] auore ualþ ere hit by arered. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 2044 So þat þou ous sykerye affore. 1430 Lydg. Chron. Troy i. vi, He gan them sowe right as men do corne Upon the land that eared was aforne. 1526 Tindale 1 Cor. xi. 21 For every man begynneth a fore [Wyclif bifore] to eate his awne supper. 1611 Bible Eph. iii. 3 As I wrote afore [Wyclif aboue] in few words. 1684 Bunyan Pilgr. ii. (1862) 219 Had I known that afore. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. iii. 286 Than he had done afore. |
B. prep. [The adv. with a defining object.]
1. Of place: Before, in front of; in advance of. arch. in literature; still common dial. and in nautical language, whence the phrase afore the mast, i.e. among the common seamen, who have their quarters there.
| 1205 Layamon 10413 Fulgenes him wes aforen on. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 2282 Alle þe Sarsyns þay a-slowe{revsc} þat þay afforn him founde. c 1440 Gesta Rom. i. 2 And fastenyd it in þe walle afore him. 1599 Hakluyt Voy. II. i. 78 The Turks army was afore Rhodes. 1653 Holcroft Procopius i. 3 Ferozes..pursued without looking afore him. 1787 Burns Wks. III. 216 So, took a birth afore the mast, An' owre the sea. 1827 J. Wilson Wks. 1855 I. 357 Plenty of life let us howp is yet afore us. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Afore the beam, all the field of view from amidship in a right angle to the ship's keel to the horizon forward. |
2. In or into the presence of. arch. and dial.
| ? 1250 Grosseteste in Dom. Archit. III. 75 Ete ȝe in the halle afore youre meyny. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. v. 12 And with a crosse afor þe kynge · comsed þus to techen. 1477 Earl Rivers (Caxton) Dictes 13 Be wel ware what ye speke afor your enemies. c 1540 Wyatt Compl. Love to Reason 152 My froward master, Afore that Queen I caused to be acited. 1812 W. Tennant Anster Fair vi. liii, Afore each half mistrusting eye. 1839 Dickens O. Twist (1850) 60/1 ‘You're getting too proud to own me afore company, are you?’ |
b. fig.
| 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xii. 81 Gultier as afor god. 1563 Homilies ii. xiii. §1 (1640) 178 If we suffer to be evill spoken of for the love of Christ, this is thankfull afore God. 1642 Rogers Naaman 365 Having God afore our eies. |
3. Of time: Before, previously to. arch. & dial.
| 898 O.E. Chron. an. 894 [He] ᵹegaderade..micelne here onforan winter. 1121 Ibid. (Laud MS.) an. 1116 Þa ormæte reinas þe coman sona onforan August. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 2483 If he wer now lyues man{revsc} afore þis had he come. c 1550 Cheke Matt. xxiv. 38 As in y⊇ tijm afoor y⊇ flood. 1611 Bible Is. xviii. 5 Afore the haruest when the bud is perfect. 1660 H. Finch Trial of Regic. 44 Some days afore that, there was a Committee. 1860 Dickens Lett. (ed. 2) II. 109 With a certain dramatic fire in her whereof I seem to remember having seen sparks afore now. |
4. Of rank or importance: In precedence of, above. arch. and dial.
| 1428 R. Whyteman in E.E. Wills (1882) Y woll that Symken..haue hem [candelstekes] A-fore eny other man. 1477 Earl Rivers (Caxton) Dictes 20 Loke that first affore all thingis ye loue, drede, and obeye our lord. 1662 Bk. Comm. Prayer, Athanasian Creed, In this Trinity, none is afore or after other. |
C. conj. [elliptical use of the prep. of time, as afore the time that he came, afore that he came, afore he came.] Before, sooner than. Sometimes strengthened with or; cf. or ere. arch. and dial.
| 1340 Ayenb. 172 Auore þet he come to ssrifte. 1525 Ld. Berners Froissart II. xviii. 34 In that season afore or Fraunces Atremon was putte oute of the towne. 1552 Lyndesay Monarche 5326 Affore that day be done, Thare salbe signis in Sonne and Mone. 1611 Bible Ezek. xxxiii. 22 In the euening, afore hee that was escaped came. 1684 Bunyan Pilgr. ii. 63 That they were hanged afore we came hither. 1827 F. Cooper Prairie I. iii. 49 They will be here afore you can find a cover! |
D. Comb.
1. Of time. a. Formerly prefixed in the sense of ‘previously, beforehand’ to vbs. and pples., as in afore-bar = preclude, afore-see, afore-acted, afore-running.
| c 1449 Pecock Repr. 502 Which lettith and afore barrith..the comaundement of God in his lawe of kinde to be doon. a 1564 Becon Christ's Chron. (1844) 552 Afore-seeing the grievous plagues. 1612 Woodall Surg. Mate Wks. 1653, 185 The signs, afore-running or demonstrating of the instant disease, are these. 1700 J. Marshall in Misc. Curiosa 1708 III. 259 The afore-acted Evil that his Soul did in its other Life. 1877 J. Morley Crit. Misc. Ser. ii. 35 Only as life wears on, do all its aforeshapen lines come into light. |
b. Still used in ppl. combinations, with the meaning, ‘earlier in time or order, previously in a discourse or document,’ as in aforesaid, aforegoing, and the similar afore-cited, -given obs., -mentioned, -named, -spoken obs., -told obs.
| 1418 Abp. Chichele in Ellis Orig. Lett. i. 2 I. 4 The avys of ȝour uncle a forseyd. 1606 Shakes. Tr. & Cr. ii. iii. 64 Thersites is a foole, and as aforesaid, Patroclus is a foole. 1863 Kemble Resid. Georgia 23 Our housemaid, the aforesaid Mary. 1592 tr. Junius on Apocal. i. 8 A confirmation of the afore going. 1815 Wellington in Gurwood Desp. X. 350 The aforegoing orders are to take effect. |
| 1683 Salmon Doron Med. ii. 417 The vertues you have in the aforecited place. 1741 Richardson Pamela (1824) I. 131 For the reasons aforegiven. 1587 Golding De Mornay ix. 133 These aforementioned Philosophers also, do call the world euerlasting. 1663 Gerbier Counsel 92 At lower rates than the afore-mentioned. 1838 Dickens Nich. Nick. xxviii. (C.D. ed.) 231 Newman wiped his eyes with the afore⁓mentioned duster. 1603 Knolles Hist. Turkes (1638) 183 The two valiant afore⁓named worthy captaines. 1845 J. H. Newman Development 341 And converted many of the afore⁓named heretics. 1582–8 Hist. Jas. VI (1804) 38 Making his residence at Glasgow for the caus afoirtold. |
2. Of place. afore-rider obs., an avant-courier, scout; aforeship obs., the front part of the ship.
| 1470 Rebell. in Linc. (1847) 16 Their aforeryders were com to Rotherham. 1471 Hist. Arriv. Edw. IV (1838) 8 Whan the Kynges aforne-ridars had thus espyed their beinge [there]. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. v. iii. (1495) 105 The formeste celle of the brayne highte prora in latyn as it were aforshyppe. |
3. with again, on: see afornens, aforn-on.