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former

 - 5 dictionary results

for⋅mer

1  [fawr-mer]
Use former in a Sentence
–adjective
1. preceding in time; prior or earlier: during a former stage in the proceedings.
2. past, long past, or ancient: in former times.
3. preceding in order; being the first of two: Our former manufacturing process was too costly.
4. being the first mentioned of two (distinguished from latter ): The former suggestion was preferred to the latter.
5. having once, or previously, been; erstwhile: a former president.
Origin:
1125–75; ME, equiv. to forme (OE forma first) + -er -er 4 . Cf. foremost

Synonyms:
3. foregoing, antecedent. 5. past, ex-.

form⋅er

2  [fawr-mer]
–noun
1. a person or thing that forms or serves to form.
2. a pupil in a particular form or grade, esp. in a British secondary school: fifth formers.
Origin:
1300–50; ME fourmer. See form, -er 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To former
form·er 1   (fôr'mər)   
n.  

  1. One that forms; a maker or creator: a former of ideas.

  2. A member of a school form: a fifth former.

for·mer 2   (fôr'mər)   
adj.  

    1. Occurring earlier in time.

    2. Of, relating to, or taking place in the past.

  2. Coming before in place or order; foregoing.

  3. Being the first of two mentioned.

  4. Having been in the past: a former ambassador.


[Middle English, comparative of forme, first, from Old English forma; see per1 in Indo-European roots.]
Usage Note: Grammarians have often insisted that the phrases the former and the latter should be used only to refer to the first of two things and the second of two things, respectively, as in Ernest L. Thayer's "Casey at the Bat": "But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake, and the former was a lulu and the latter was a fake." It is easy to find violations of this rule in the works of good writers; nonetheless, many readers feel uneasy when the words are used in enumerations of more than two things, just as they would feel uneasy over the similar incorrect use of a comparative in a sentence such as Her boys are 7, 9, and 13; only the younger was born in California.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

former 
"earlier in time," c.1160, comparative of forme "first," patterned on formest "foremost" (see foremost). An unusual case of a comparative formed from a superlative (the -m- is a superlative element; the word was formed on the analogy of foremost).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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