former meaning
former :
past, previous
adjective
▪ She is a former teacher.
▪ She was a teacher before.
▪ His former job was in sales.
▪ His past job was in sales.
paraphrasing
▪ previous – past
▪ earlier – before now
▪ prior – before
▪ preceding – coming before
former :
the first of two things
noun
▪ Of the two options, I prefer the former.
▪ Of the two choices, I like the first one.
▪ The former is better than the latter.
▪ The first one is better than the second one.
paraphrasing
▪ first – the one before
▪ initial – the beginning one
▪ primary – main or first
▪ original – the first one
Pronunciation
former [ˈfɔːr.mər]
The stress is on 'for' and sounds like 'for-mer'.
Common phrases and grammar about former
former - Common meaning
adjective
past, previous
noun
the first of two things
Part of Speech Changes for "former"
▪ formerly (adverb) – in the past
▪ form (noun) – shape or type
Common Expressions with "former"
▪ former president – past leader
▪ former employee – past worker
▪ former partner – past associate
▪ former address – past location
Important examples of former in TOEIC
Vocabulary examples from the TOEIC test
In TOEIC vocabulary questions, former is often used to describe past positions or roles.
Example of a confusing word: formal (official or conventional)
Grammar examples from the TOEIC test
Former is often used as an adjective to describe something that existed in the past.
former
Idioms and fixed expressions in TOEIC
former glory
'past greatness', used to talk about something that was great in the past.
former self
means 'how someone was in the past'.
Differences between similar words and former
former
,
previous
differences
Former is used to describe something from the past, while previous refers to the one just before.
former
,
earlier
differences
Former refers to something that existed in the past, while earlier is more general and can refer to any time before now.
Words with the same origin as former
The origin of former
The word 'former' comes from the Old English 'forma', meaning 'first'.
Word structure
It has the root form (shape or type), with the suffix er (comparative), and means 'first in time'.
Words with the same origin
The word's root is unclear or difficult to confirm.
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