Previously in Different Languages
Discover 'Previously' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'previously' is a small but powerful term that indicates something has already happened or occurred before the present time. Its significance lies in its ability to create a timeline, helping us understand the order of events and their relevance to one another. Previously has played a crucial role in storytelling, allowing writers to build suspense, create flashbacks, and maintain a logical flow in their narratives.
Culturally, previously has been used in various art forms, from literature and films to music and theater. It has been instrumental in shaping our understanding of history, enabling us to appreciate the progression of societies, ideas, and traditions. Moreover, previously serves as a reminder that our present circumstances are often shaped by past events and decisions.
Given its importance, you might be interested in knowing how to say previously in different languages. This can be particularly useful when learning a new language, as it exposes you to new grammatical structures and vocabulary. Here are a few sample translations:
- French: précédemment
- Spanish: anteriormente
- German: zuvor
- Italian: precedentemente
- Chinese: 先前 (xiān qián)
- Japanese: 以前 (i mae)
Stay tuned for a more comprehensive list of translations, as we delve deeper into the fascinating world of language and culture.
Previously
Previously in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | voorheen | ||
| In Dutch, "voorheen" can also mean "formerly" or "aforementioned". | |||
| Amharic | ከዚህ በፊት | ||
| "ከዚህ በፊት" is the combination of "ከ," meaning “from,” "ዚህ," meaning "this," and "በፊት," meaning "face" or "front". | |||
| Hausa | a baya | ||
| The Hausa word "a baya" can also mean "long ago" or "in the past". | |||
| Igbo | na mbụ | ||
| In Igbo, 'na mbụ' can also mean 'to be first' when used in a sentence. | |||
| Malagasy | taloha | ||
| Taloha, derived from the Arabic "thalaatha", is also used to indicate three of something or to refer to three o'clock | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kale | ||
| The word kale in Nyanja can also refer to a type of pumpkin leaf. | |||
| Shona | kare | ||
| The word "kare" can also refer to the past, something done, or a place or time that is no longer relevant. | |||
| Somali | hore | ||
| The Somali word "hore" also means "before" or "in the past." | |||
| Sesotho | pejana | ||
| In Sesotho, "pejana" can also refer to "earlier" or "early on". | |||
| Swahili | awali | ||
| The word "awali" can also mean "beginning" or "original state" in Swahili. | |||
| Xhosa | ngaphambili | ||
| The word "ngaphambili" is composed of the root "-phamb-" meaning "to pass or precede" and the prefix "nga-" indicating past tense. | |||
| Yoruba | tẹlẹ | ||
| 'Tẹlẹ' also means 'beginning' and can be used as a prefix for names, e.g.: 'Tẹlẹ-Ọba' = 'Beginning of a King'. | |||
| Zulu | phambilini | ||
| In the Zulu language, "phambilini" means both "previously" and "in front" or "ahead". | |||
| Bambara | ka kɔn o ɲɛ | ||
| Ewe | tsã | ||
| Kinyarwanda | mbere | ||
| Lingala | liboso | ||
| Luganda | emabegako | ||
| Sepedi | pele ga moo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | kan no | ||
Previously in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | سابقا | ||
| سابقا originated from the verb سبق which means to outpace, surpass, or precede. | |||
| Hebrew | קוֹדֶם | ||
| The word קוֹדֶם can also mean "before" (in time), "in front of," "at the beginning of," or "at the head of." | |||
| Pashto | مخکې | ||
| مخکې is ultimately derived from a Proto-Indo-Iranian root *maka- meaning "fore, in front, before, ahead" and cognates with Sanskrit मक (maka) "aforementioned". | |||
| Arabic | سابقا | ||
| سابقا originated from the verb سبق which means to outpace, surpass, or precede. | |||
Previously in Western European Languages
| Albanian | më parë | ||
| The Albanian word "më parë" has roots in ancient Greek and Latin, and may also mean "in the past" or "before". | |||
| Basque | lehenago | ||
| The word "lehenago" can also be used to mean "before" or "previously" in Basque, but it is not as common as its other meanings. | |||
| Catalan | prèviament | ||
| The word "prèviament" has also been used to indicate "prevalence" or "precedence". | |||
| Croatian | prethodno | ||
| The Croatian word 'prethodno' also has the archaic meaning of 'earlier' or 'some time ago'. | |||
| Danish | tidligere | ||
| The word "tidligere" derives from Old Danish "tidliger", meaning "more early" or "sooner", and is related to German "zeitlich", meaning "in the course of time". | |||
| Dutch | eerder | ||
| The word "eerder" in Dutch can also mean "rather" or "sooner". | |||
| English | previously | ||
| The word "previously" derives from the Latin word "praevius," meaning "going before." | |||
| French | précédemment | ||
| The French word "précédemment" comes from the Latin word "prae" meaning "before" and the word "cedere" meaning "to go" or "to advance". | |||
| Frisian | earder | ||
| The word "earder" in Frisian can also mean "earlier" or "before". | |||
| Galician | anteriormente | ||
| The word "anteriormente" in Galician comes from the Latin word "anterior", meaning "that which is before; in front". It can also mean "in the past" or "in the beginning". | |||
| German | vorher | ||
| The term "vorher" derives from the Middle High German "voren" or "vore" (in front). It also has an alternate meaning: a "preamble," especially in law. | |||
| Icelandic | áður | ||
| Áður, a word meaning "in the past", derives from á, "on", and dǫgr, "day"} | |||
| Irish | roimhe seo | ||
| "Roimhe seo" is the Irish phrase for "previously", coming from the preposition "roimh" meaning "before" and the demonstrative pronoun "seo" meaning "this" or "here". | |||
| Italian | in precedenza | ||
| The Italian word "in precedenza" ultimately derives from the Latin phrase "in praecedentia," meaning "in the presence of or before something else." | |||
| Luxembourgish | virdrun | ||
| The word "virdrun" is derived from the German "vorher", meaning "previously". | |||
| Maltese | qabel | ||
| The word "qabel" can also mean "before", "in front of", or "facing". | |||
| Norwegian | tidligere | ||
| "Tidligere" can also mean "formerly" or "previously", and may also refer to someone who was previously in a particular position or relationship. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | anteriormente | ||
| "Anteriormente" also means "formerly" and "prior". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | roimhe seo | ||
| The word 'roimhe seo' is formed from the Gaelic words 'roimh' (meaning 'before') and 'seo' (meaning 'this'). It can also be used to mean 'aforetime' or 'in the past'. | |||
| Spanish | previamente | ||
| The Spanish word "previamente" derives from the Latin "praevius", meaning "going before". | |||
| Swedish | tidigare | ||
| Tidigare is derived from the Old Norse verb 'thyggia', meaning 'to remember or think'. It can also mean 'formerly or in the past'. | |||
| Welsh | yn flaenorol | ||
| The word "yn flaenorol" is an adverb or conjunction in the Welsh language which can also mean "in advance" or "beforehand". | |||
Previously in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | раней | ||
| The word "раней" in Belarusian also means "earlier" or "before". | |||
| Bosnian | ranije | ||
| "Ranije" is derived from the Old Slavic word "ranije", which means "earlier" or "before". It is related to the Russian word "раньше" (ran'she) and the Polish word "raczej" (ra-chay), both of which also mean "earlier" or "before". | |||
| Bulgarian | преди това | ||
| The Bulgarian word "преди това" also means "before that" or "before this". | |||
| Czech | dříve | ||
| The word "dříve" in Czech can also mean "earlier", "before", or "in the past". | |||
| Estonian | varem | ||
| The word "varem" in Estonian can also refer to preparation, readiness, or equipment | |||
| Finnish | aiemmin | ||
| Aiemmin derives from the Proto-Uralic word *ajjemi, meaning "earlier." | |||
| Hungarian | korábban | ||
| The word "korábban" has multiple meanings in Hungarian, including "formerly" and "before". | |||
| Latvian | iepriekš | ||
| It relates to the word "iepriekša", meaning "to move forward". In Latvian the word is used for a period of time that happened in the past, and in Lithuanian for a place or object located in front. | |||
| Lithuanian | anksčiau | ||
| The word "anksčiau" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ant-, meaning "before" or "in front of". | |||
| Macedonian | претходно | ||
| The word "претходно" ("previously") in Macedonian can also mean "advance" or "preceding". | |||
| Polish | poprzednio | ||
| The word "poprzednio" comes from the Old Polish word "przednie", meaning "the front" or "the first". | |||
| Romanian | anterior | ||
| In Romanian, "anterior" can also refer to someone who is in front of or above someone else in a hierarchical or spatial sense. | |||
| Russian | ранее | ||
| “ранее” (previously) comes from “ранити” (to wound) and has also been used to mean “before". | |||
| Serbian | претходно | ||
| The word "претходно" can also mean "firstly" or "above all" in a list of items. | |||
| Slovak | predtým | ||
| In Czech "dříve" has an additional meaning of "sooner" (in time), e.g. "dříve, než přijdeš"} | |||
| Slovenian | prej | ||
| The word 'prej' can also mean 'too early', 'beforehand', 'formerly', 'heretofore', 'before this', or 'prior to' depending on context. | |||
| Ukrainian | раніше | ||
| The word "раніше" can also mean "earlier" or "before". | |||
Previously in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | পূর্বে | ||
| The word "পূর্বে" also means "in the east" and is derived from the Sanskrit word "पूर्व" (pūrva) which means "east" or "former." | |||
| Gujarati | અગાઉ | ||
| The word "અગાઉ" ("previously") is derived from the Sanskrit word "agrāvat," meaning "ahead" or "in front. | |||
| Hindi | इससे पहले | ||
| The word "इससे पहले" can also mean "before this" or "prior to this" in Hindi. | |||
| Kannada | ಇದಕ್ಕೂ ಮುಂಚೆ | ||
| Malayalam | മുമ്പ് | ||
| The word “മുമ്പ്” was used to mean not only “previously” but also “formerly” or “in the past”. | |||
| Marathi | पूर्वी | ||
| The Marathi word "पूर्वी" can also mean "in the east", derived from the Sanskrit word "पूर्व" meaning "east". | |||
| Nepali | पहिले | ||
| The word "पहिले" in Nepali has an alternate meaning in Sanskrit, which is "first". | |||
| Punjabi | ਪਹਿਲਾਂ | ||
| The word 'ਪਹਿਲਾਂ' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'प्रत्यह' (pratyaha), which means 'daily' or 'every day'. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කලින් | ||
| The word 'කලින්' in Sinhala, can also mean 'to pass over' or 'to go over'. | |||
| Tamil | முன்பு | ||
| The word 'முன்பு' in Tamil can also mean 'in front of' or 'beforehand'. | |||
| Telugu | గతంలో | ||
| The word "గతంలో" also means "in the old days" or "in the past". | |||
| Urdu | پہلے | ||
| The word "پہلے" can also mean "former" or "first". | |||
Previously in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 先前 | ||
| 先前 (xiānqián) means 'in the past' in Chinese, and is similar to the English word 'prior'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 先前 | ||
| "先前" can also be used to describe something that happened at an unknown or indefinite time in the past. | |||
| Japanese | 以前 | ||
| The word "以前" can also mean "before" or "in the past." | |||
| Korean | 이전에 | ||
| 이전에 is a combination of the prefix "이-" (past) and "전에" (before), and can also mean "formerly", "beforehand", or "in the past." | |||
| Mongolian | өмнө нь | ||
| The Mongolian word "өмнө нь" also means "in front of" in a spatial sense. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ယခင်က | ||
| The word "ယခင်က" is derived from the words "ယခု" (present) and "-က" (past tense suffix), so it literally means "the present that has passed". It can also be used to refer to "the former time" or "the time before present". | |||
Previously in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | sebelumnya | ||
| The word 'sebelumnya' comes from the Old Javanese word 'saben', meaning 'every time', and the suffix '-nya', which indicates possession or reference to something specific. | |||
| Javanese | sadurunge | ||
| Sadurunge is cognate with 'saturon', meaning one or complete, which may hint at the meaning of 'in the one/whole (situation) before'. | |||
| Khmer | ពីមុន | ||
| The word ពីមុន (peamoun) can also mean "formerly" or "in the past" in Khmer. | |||
| Lao | ກ່ອນ ໜ້າ ນີ້ | ||
| Malay | sebelum ini | ||
| The word "sebelum ini" can also mean "previously done" or "previously accomplished". | |||
| Thai | ก่อนหน้านี้ | ||
| "ก่อนหน้านี้" means "some time before" and can be used to refer to something that occurred at an unspecified time before the present moment. | |||
| Vietnamese | trước đây | ||
| "Trước đây" literally means "front here" and can also refer to "in front of" or "anteriorly". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | dati | ||
Previously in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | əvvəllər | ||
| The word "əvvəllər" in Azerbaijani is ultimately derived from the Proto-Turkic root *əl "hand, front", but also has alternate meanings such as "before" or "in the beginning". | |||
| Kazakh | бұрын | ||
| The word "бұрын" is also used in Kazakh to mean "nose". | |||
| Kyrgyz | мурда | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "мурда" is derived from the Persian word "marda" meaning "man" or "hero." | |||
| Tajik | қаблан | ||
| В словаре таджикского языка указано, что слово "қаблан" также означает "старый", "прежний" и "бывший" | |||
| Turkmen | ozal | ||
| Uzbek | ilgari | ||
| The word "ilgari" comes from the Persian word "il" meaning "first" and "gari" meaning "time". | |||
| Uyghur | ئىلگىرى | ||
Previously in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ma mua | ||
| "Ma mua" in Hawaiian also signifies a direction or place that is in front, ahead, or forward. | |||
| Maori | i mua | ||
| The Māori word "i mua" also means "in front" or "to the fore". | |||
| Samoan | talu ai | ||
| "Talu ai' comes from 'talu' (to count) and 'ai' (food). Samoan ancestors would count the food that was left over to gauge how much more food they needed to prepare for the following day. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | dati | ||
| Tagalog "dati" may also mean "past", "former", or "previously existing". | |||
Previously in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | nayra pachana | ||
| Guarani | yma | ||
Previously in International Languages
| Esperanto | antaŭe | ||
| The word "antaŭe" is derived from "antaŭ" (before) and the suffix "-e" (adverbial ending). | |||
| Latin | ante | ||
| In Latin, 'ante' can also mean 'before' in the sense of time or space. | |||
Previously in Others Languages
| Greek | προηγουμένως | ||
| "Προηγουμένως" (previously) in Greek comes from the verb "προηγέομαι" (to go ahead), which is composed of the prefix "προ-" (before) and the verb "ηγέομαι" (to lead). Therefore, "προηγουμένως" literally means "having gone ahead" or "leading the way."} | |||
| Hmong | yav tas los | ||
| The term "yav tas los" derives from the Hmong words "yav" (go), "tas" (past), and "los" (to complete), hence literally meaning "having gone past completion". | |||
| Kurdish | berê | ||
| The word "berê" in Kurdish can also mean "a moment ago". | |||
| Turkish | önceden | ||
| "Önceden" means "in advance" or "beforehand" in Turkish, and comes from the word "önce" which means "before". | |||
| Xhosa | ngaphambili | ||
| The word "ngaphambili" is composed of the root "-phamb-" meaning "to pass or precede" and the prefix "nga-" indicating past tense. | |||
| Yiddish | ביז אַהער | ||
| "ביז אַהער" in Yiddish can be traced back to the Hebrew biblical phrase "עד הנה", meaning "up to here" or "until now." | |||
| Zulu | phambilini | ||
| In the Zulu language, "phambilini" means both "previously" and "in front" or "ahead". | |||
| Assamese | পূৰ্বতে | ||
| Aymara | nayra pachana | ||
| Bhojpuri | पहिले के बा | ||
| Dhivehi | ކުރިން | ||
| Dogri | पहले | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | dati | ||
| Guarani | yma | ||
| Ilocano | dati | ||
| Krio | bifo dis tɛm | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | پێشتر | ||
| Maithili | पहिने | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯃꯥꯡꯗꯥ ꯑꯦꯟ.ꯗꯤ.ꯑꯦ | ||
| Mizo | a hmain | ||
| Oromo | kanaan dura | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ପୂର୍ବରୁ | ||
| Quechua | ñawpaq | ||
| Sanskrit | पूर्वम् | ||
| Tatar | элегрәк | ||
| Tigrinya | ቅድሚ ሕጂ | ||
| Tsonga | khale ka sweswo | ||