Search Chambers
Consult Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, The Chambers Thesaurus (1996) or Chambers Biographical Dictionary (1997 edition with amendments). Enter your search and choose your title from the drop-down menu.
before prep 1 earlier than something • before noon. 2 ahead of or in front of someone or something. 3 in the presence of, or for the attention of, someone • The question before us is a complex one. 4 rather than or in preference to someone or something • Never put money before friendship. 5 formal or literary in the face of something • draw back before the blast. conj 1 earlier than the time when something occurs • Tidy up before Mum gets back. 2 rather than or in preference to doing something • I'd die before I'd surrender. adverb 1 previously; in the past. 2 now rare or formal in front; ahead • saints who have gone before.
ETYMOLOGY: Anglo-Saxon beforan.
-
The Chambers Dictionary (13th edition)
“Chambers is the one I keep at my right hand”- Philip Pullman.
The unrivalled dictionary for word lovers, now in its 13th edition.
-
The Chambers Thesaurus
The Chambers Thesaurus (4th Edition) is a veritable treasure-trove, including the greatest selection of alternative words and phrases available in an A to Z format. -
Chambers Biographical Dictionary
“Simply all you need to know about anyone” – Fay Weldon.
Thoroughly revised and updated for its 9th edition.
Consult Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, The Chambers Thesaurus (1996) or Chambers Biographical Dictionary (1997 edition with amendments). Enter your search and choose your title from the drop-down menu.
Search Tip
A wildcard is a special character you can use to replace one or more characters in a word. There are two types of wildcard. The first is a question mark ?, which matches a single character. The second is an asterisk *, which matches zero or more characters. The two kinds of wildcard can be mixed in a single search.
View More Search Tips