Prior vs. Former
Difference Between Prior and Former
Prioradjective
Advance; previous; coming before.
I had no prior knowledge you were coming.Formeradjective
Previous.
A former president;the former East GermanyPrioradjective
Former, previous.
His prior residence was smaller than his current one.Formeradjective
First of aforementioned two items. Used with the, often without a noun.
The former is a good idea but the latter is not.I drive two vehicles, a Chevy Camaro and an AMC Gremlin. I won the former on a game show.Prioradverb
(colloquial) Previously.
The doctor had known three months prior.Formernoun
Someone who forms something; a maker; a creator or founder.
Dave was the former of the company.Priornoun
A high-ranking member of a monastery, usually lower in rank than an abbot.
Formernoun
An object used to form something, such as a template, gauge, or cutting die.
The brick arch was built using a wooden former.Priornoun
(historical) A chief magistrate in Italy.
Formernoun
Someone in, or of, a certain form (class).
Priornoun
A previous arrest or criminal conviction on someone's record.
Formernoun
the first of two or the first mentioned of two;
Tom and Dick were both heroes but only the former is remembered todayPriornoun
(statistics) In Bayesian inference, a prior probability distribution, one based on information or belief before additional data is collected.
Formeradjective
referring to the first of two things or persons mentioned (or the earlier one or ones of several);
the novel was made into a film in 1943 and again in 1967; I prefer the former version to the latter onePriornoun
the head of a religious order; in an abbey the prior is next below the abbot
Formeradjective
belonging to some prior time;
erstwhile friendour former glorythe once capital of the stateher quondam loverPrioradjective
earlier in time
Formeradjective
(used especially of persons) of the immediate past;
the former presidentour late President is still very activethe previous occupant of the White HouseFormeradjective
of the distant past;
the early inhabitants of Europeformer generationsin other times
