Beforehand

Definitions: Beforehand

Beforehand

Adjective

1. Being ahead of time or need; "gave advance warning"; "was beforehand with her report".

Adverb

1. Ahead of time; in anticipation; "when you pay ahead (or in advance) you receive a discount"; "We like to plan ahead"; "should have made reservations beforehand".

Date "beforehand" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1050. (references)

Synonyms: Beforehand

Synonyms: advance(a) (adj), beforehand(p) (adj), ahead (adv), in advance (adv). (additional references)

Context	Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus).
Earliness	Verb: be early; Adjective:, be beforehand; adVerb: keep time, take time by the forelock, anticipate, forestall; have the start, gain the start; steal a march upon; gain time, draw on futurity; bespeak, secure, engage, preengage.
	Beforehand; prematurely; Adjective: precipitately; (hastily); too soon; before its time, before one's time; in anticipation; unexpectedly.
Foresight	Anticipate; expect; be beforehand; (early); predict; foreknow, forejudge, forecast; presurmise; have an eye to the future, have an eye to the main chance; respicere finem; keep a sharp lookout; (vigilance); forewarn.
Predetermination	Verb: predestine, preordain, predetermine, premeditate, resolve, concert; resolve beforehand, predesignate.
Priority	Be beforehand; (be early); steal a march upon, anticipate, forestall; have the start, gain the start.
	Adverb: before, prior to; earlier; previously; Adjective: afore, aforehand, beforehand, ere, theretofore, erewhile; ere then, ere now, before then, before now; erewhile, already, yet, beforehand; on the eve of.
Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus.

Domain

Usage

Screenplays

I tell any girl I'm going out with to assume that all plans are soft until she receives confirmation 30 minutes beforehand. (The American President; writing credit: Aaron Sorkin.)

Yeah, I should've gotten shots beforehand. (Heartbreak Ridge; writing credit: James Carabatsos)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Author	Quotation
Francis Bacon	Look to make your course regular, that men may know beforehand what they may expect.
Miguel de Cervantes	I thought it working for a dead horse, because I am paid beforehand.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Author	Date	Quotation
John Locke	1690	This constrained them to come unto laws, wherein all men might see their duty beforehand, and know the penalties of transgressing them. (Second Treatise of Government)
Communist Manifesto	1848	Thereupon the workers begin to form combinations (Trades Unions) against the bourgeois; they club together in order to keep up the rate of wages; they found permanent associations in order to make provision beforehand for these occasional revolts. (reference)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Title	Author	Quote
Gulliver's Travels	Swift, Jonathan	The seamen were all provided with cordage, which I had beforehand twisted to a sufficient strength.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Subject	Topic	Quote
Health		To prepare for the procedure you will have to restrict your diet for a few days beforehand. (references)
		Your colon must be completely empty for the colonoscopy to be thorough and safe. To prepare for the procedure you may have to follow a liquid diet for 1 to 3 days beforehand. (references)
		The colon and rectum must be completely empty for sigmoidoscopy to be thorough and safe, so the physician will probably tell you to drink only clear liquids for 12 to 24 hours beforehand. (references)
Civil Liberties	Croatia	Improvements in the refugee clearance process instituted in 2000 successfully eliminated arrests of those returnees who were advised beforehand by the Interior Ministry that they had no outstanding legal processes. (references)
Economic History	Azerbaijan	Firms selling to the GOAJ should be particularly careful to specify beforehand how the 18 percent VAT will be levied. (references)
Human Rights	India	The Home Minister in recent years has enforced a dormant executive order requiring visitors for some conferences from certain countries to register beforehand. (references)
Travel	Ukraine	Be sure to agree on a price beforehand. (references)
	Botswana	The Business Meeting: Reconfirm your meeting twenty-four hours beforehand directly with the person you are to meet, if possible. (references)
Women	Niger	Islamic groups criticized the ratification and complained that they were not consulted beforehand. (references)
Worker Rights	Costa Rica	It ruled that public sector strikes may be allowed only if a judge approves them beforehand and finds that "services necessary to the well-being of the public" are not jeopardized. (references)
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

"Beforehand" is generally used as an adverb (general) -- approximately 99.25% of the time. "Beforehand" is used about 535 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted)

Parts of Speech	Percent	Usage per 100 Million Words	Rank in English
Adverb (general)	99.25%	531	11,537
Adjective (general or positive)	0.75%	4	175,879
Total	100.00%	535	N/A

Expressions using "beforehand": advise beforehand ♦ arrange beforehand ♦ be beforehand with smb. ♦ be beforehand with the world ♦ decide beforehand ♦ fix beforehand ♦ pay beforehand ♦ put beforehand ♦ resolve beforehand. Additional references.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com.

Language		Translations for "beforehand"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.
Albanian		që më parë (in advance), para kohe (early, in advance, precociously), para (ahead, before, cash, chuck, contribution, currency, dough, Duff, forward, in face of, in front of, kale, loot, mammon, money, necessary, oil, oof, pelf, roll, shekels, shell, shiners, siller, splosh, stiff, the almighty), më përpara (above, before, earlier, erenow, first, prior to). (various references)

Arabic		‏مقدما (advance, in advance, in anticipation), ‏مسبق (predestination, previous, prior), ‏سلفا (in advance), ‏عوضا. (various references)

Bulgarian		отрано, отнапред (in advance), отпреди, от по-рано, предварително (aforetime, in advance, pre-, previously), преди (afore, ago, already, before, ere, or, preceding, preparatory to, previous to, prior to, since, whilom). (various references)

Chinese		豫 (prepare), � �先 (prior), � � (in advance, to advance, to prepare), 予先. (various references)

Czech		předem (in advance), dříve (earlier, ere, erst, formerly, in former times, previously, sooner). (various references)

Danish		Raadet kan forud indhente en udtalelse fra Domstolen om... (the Council may obtain beforehand the opinion of the Court of Justice as to...), påtegne (to approve beforehand), gennem forlods fradrag (by means of deduction beforehand). (various references)

Dutch		vooraf. (various references)

Farsi		پیشاپیش , پیش (Ahead, Along, Before, Fore, Foreside, Forth, Forward, Front, Past, Presence, To), مقدم بر (Precedency), قبلا (Already, Erstwhile, Heretofore), جلو (Ahead, Along, Before, Foreside, Forth, Forward, Up), اماده (Able, Apt, Fresh, Handy, Lief, Present, Prompt, Provided, Ready, Stock, Yare), راحت (Comfort, Comfortable, Convenient, Cozy, Cuddly, Placid, Snug, Straight, Well). (various references)

Finnish		etukäteen (in advance), ennakolta (in advance), edeltäpäin (in advance), edeltäkäsin (in advance). (various references)

French		préalablement, d'avance, auparavant (before), au préalable, � l'avance. (various references)

German		zuvor (afore, ahead, before, before then, formerly, previously). (various references)

Greek		προηγουμένωσ (formerly, previously), εκ των προτέρων (aforehand, in advance, in anticipation). (various references)

Hebrew		מראש (from the beginning, in advance), קו�"ם (antecedent, anterior, before, foregoing, forerunner, former, preceding, previous, previously, prior). (various references)

Hungarian		korábban (anteriorly, before, ci-devant, earlier, formerly, previously, prior to that). (various references)

Indonesian		sebelumnya (formerly, previous, previously). (various references)

Italian		prima (at first, at the outset, back, before, earlier, first, first night, first of all, firstly, formerly, in advance, once, premiere, previously, sooner), precipitoso (hasty, headlong, hurried, precipitant, precipitate, precipitous, rash), in anticipo (ahead, forward). (various references)

Japanese Kanji		事前 (in advance, prior), 予め (in advance, previously), 前々 (for a long time), 前前 (for a long time), 前以て (in advance, previously), 前もって (in advance, previously). (various references)

Japanese Katakana		まえまえ (for a long time), まえもって (in advance, previously), あらかじめ (in advance, previously), じぜ�" (charity, in advance, philanthropy, prior, second best). (various references)

Korean		미리. (various references)

Manx		rolaue (aforethought, prior). (various references)

Pig Latin		eforehandbay

Portuguese		antemão, antecipadamente (ere, in advance). (various references)

Portuguese Brazilian		antemão. (various references)

Romanian		pripit (foolish, hasty, hurried, impetuous, previous, quick, rash, rashly, thoughtless), dinainte (fore, forward), anticipat (advance, anticipated, anticipatory, in advance, prevenient), înainte (afore, ahead, along, before, fore, formerly, forth, forward, forwards, in advance, on, onward). (various references)

Russian		наперед (in advance), заранее (in advance, previously). (various references)

Serbo-Croatian		unapred (advance: in advance, forwards, onward), ranije (afore, anteriorly, before, earlier, erenow, formerly, heretofore, previously, sooner). (various references)

Spanish		de antemano. (various references)

Swedish		på förhand (in advance), i förväg (ahead, in advance, previously). (various references)

Thai		ก่อนเวลา. (various references)

Turkish		peşinen, peşin olarak (down, in advance, in anticipation), önceden (afore, aforetime, ahead, already, before now, beforetime, ere now, erstwhile, formerly, heretofore, in advance, in anticipation, onetime, pre-, previously). (various references)

Ukranian		наперед (forward, in advance), завчасно (aforehand, early, plenty of time), заздалегідь (a priory, aforehand, betimes, in advance, in good time, previously). (various references)

Vietnamese		biết trước sẵn tiền, sẵn s� ng trước l� m trước, đoán trước (previsional, prognosticative, prognosticatory, prophetic, prophetical). (various references)

Welsh		ymlaen llaw. (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

Language	Period	Translations
Avestan	200-600	para. (various references)
Old English	450-1100	foran to. (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Language	Date	Source	Mark Chapter 14, Verse 8
Greek (transliterated)	250 BC	Septuagint	O eicen auth epoihsen proelaben murisai mou to swma eiV ton entafiasmon
Latin	405	Vulgate	Quod habuit haec fecit praevenit unguere corpus meum in sepulturam
Old English	990	West Saxon	þeos sealde þt hyo hæfde. hyo com tosmeriene minne lichame on berigenne.
Middle English	1395	Wyclif	Sche dide that that sche hadde; sche cam bifore to anoynte my bodi in to biriyng.
Renaissance English	1526	Tyndale	She hath done that she coulde: she came a fore honde to anoynt my boddy to his buryinge warde.
Jacobean English	1611	King James	She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying.
Victorian English	1833	Webster	She hath done what she could: she is come beforehand to anoint my body to the burying.
Basic English	1964	Ogden	She has done what she was able: she has put oil on my body to make it ready for its last resting-place.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Language	Mark Chapter 14, Verse 8
Cebuano	Gihimo niya ang maarangan niya sa paghimo; ang akong lawas gihaplasan niyang daan alang sa paglubong.
Chinese	他所作的、是盡他所能的．他是為我安葬的事、把香膏豫先澆在我身上。
Croatian	Uèinila je što je mogla: unaprijed mi pomaza tijelo za ukop.
Danish	Hun gjorde, hvad hun kunde; hun salvede forud mit Legeme til Begravelsen.
Dutch	Zij heeft gedaan, hetgeen zij konde; zij is voorgekomen, om Mijn lichaam te zalven, tot een voorbereiding ter begrafenis.
Finnish	Hän teki, minkä voi. Edeltäkäsin hän voiteli minun ruumiini hautaamista varten.
French	Elle a fait ce qu`elle a pu; elle a d`avance embaumé mon corps pour la sépulture.
Gaelic	Rinn i na b`urrainn dhi: thainig i ro-laimh a dh` ungadh mo chuirp air son an adhlaic.
German	Sie hat getan, was sie konnte; sie ist zuvorgekommen, meinen Leib zu salben zu meinem Begräbnis.
Hungarian	Õ a mi tõle telt, azt tevé: elõre megkente az én testemet a temetésre.
Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari	Wanita ini telah melakukan apa yang dapat ia lakukan. Ia sudah menyiapkan Aku dengan minyak wangi untuk penguburan-Ku sebelum waktunya.
Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama	Perempuan ini sudah berbuat seberapa dapat dibuatnya, yaitu ia datang hendak mengurapi tubuh-Ku, seolah-olah suatu persediaan bagi hal menguburkan kelak.
Maori	Kua mahia e ia te mea e taea e ia: kua whakawahia e ia i mua nei toku tinana mo te tanumanga.
Norwegian	Hun gjorde det hun kunde; hun salvet forut mitt legeme til min jordeferd.
Portuguese	ela fez o que pode; antecipou-se a ungir o meu corpo para a sepultura.
Rumanian	Ea a fqcut ce a putut; Mi -a uns trupul mai dinainte, pentru kngropare.
Russian	пОБ У�"ЕМБМБ, ЮФП НПЗМБ: � ТЕ�"ЧБТЙМБ � ПНБЪБФШ ФЕМП нПЕ Л � ПЗТЕ�'ЕОЙА.
Shuar	Ju nuwa Ashí nii Túramnia Núnaka umikiai. Wi Jákatin jeatsain, iwiarsatin kunkuinian shiir ukatrurai.
Spanish	Ella ha hecho lo que podía, porque se ha anticipado a ungir mi cuerpo para la sepultura.
Swahili	Yeye amefanya alivyoweza; ameupaka mwili wangu marashi kuutayarisha kwa maziko.
Swedish	Vad hon kunde, det gjorde hon. Hon har i förväg smort min kropp såsom en tillredelse till min begravning.
Uma	Tobine toei mpobabehi napa to nakule' mpobabehi. Natuai-a hante lana honga mporodo ami' -mi woto-ku hi karatana-ku mpai', kako'ia-na rata tempo-na.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Misspellings
	"Beforehand" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: beforeand. (additional references)
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references).

# of Phoneme Matches	Pronunciation	Word(s) rhyming with "beforehand" (pronounced bufô"rha'nd)
7	-f ô" r h a' n d	forehand.
4	-h a' n d	backhand, farmhand, freehand, longhand, secondhand, shorthand, stagehand.
3	-a' n d	ampersand, armband, Badland, bandstand, broadband, contraband, cropland, dreamland, fairyland, Fantasyland, farmland, Fatherland, firebrand, flatland, grandstand, grassland, handstand, headband, heartland, hinterland, homeland, inland, lowland, mainland, marshland, Midland, moorland, motherland, newsstand, nightstand, Northland, outland, overland, parkland, quicksand, reprimand, seastrand, Southland, spaceband, sunland, Timberland, undermanned, wasteland, wetland, Wonderland, woodland.
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams
	Words within the letters "a-b-d-e-e-f-h-n-o-r"
	-2 letters: bonehead, forehand, forehead, freehand.
	-3 letters: bandore, bodhran, broaden, deboner, enrobed, forbade, redbone.
	-4 letters: adhere, aerobe, bander, barfed, beaned, before, behead, bender, bonder, borane, boreen, deafen, deafer, debone, dehorn, earned, endear, enrobe, feared, fedora, fender, fonder, forbad, hadron, harden, header, herbed, hereof, hereon, horned, neared, redone, roband.
	-5 letters: abhor, abode, adobe, adore, adorn, afore, anode.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.