![]() ![]() This is partly because it sounds odd to modern listeners, but mostly because the audience can’t go back over the preceding sentence to double-check which item in a set is former and which is latter.Īn easy way to remember the difference is to recall that both former and first begin with an F, while both latter and last start with an L. It’s rare that either word appears in casual speech. #Fromer later definition how toHow to use themįormer and latter usually show up in formal or technical writing. The relevant sense of latter is defined as of or relating to or being the second of the two sets or things or the last of several sets or things being referred to. The boss offered me a job in New York or a job in. #Fromer later definition fullThe full name of the Mormon Church, for example, is “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.” Here, Latter-Day is a reference to a time period and is almost synonymous with late. The meaning of latter is the last mentioned, or the last in a list, of two people, places, or things. In addition to meaning “being the second mentioned of two,” latter can also refer to something that is “more advanced in time” and “near or comparatively near the end.” It originated before 1000 from the Old English lætra. Similarly, Jimmy Carter is a former president in that he stopped being president in 1981. It means “preceding in time” and can be used to describe “having once, or previously, been.” For example, a new employee may be introduced as “Jim, formerly of Very Big Corporation,” with the clear meaning that he’s no longer an employee there. Former first appears in the 1100s, as a term equivalent to forme. Of course, the terms can be used independently of each other while still referring to a sequence.įor example (from the New York Times): “…Most suburbanites of those days-when the word ‘sustainable’ had not yet been coined-didn’t grow anything besides lawn and dandelions (the latter unintentionally).” Additional uses and meaningsīoth of these words have somewhat related secondary meanings. By using the terms in this way, the speaker manages to indicate which horse the listener should take and which should be sent to their brother without having to repeat the full description of each horse. If offered a choice between death and exile, he said that he would choose the former. Here, the former item in the list is a grey horse, and the latter item is a black horse. noun : the first one of two things or people that have been mentioned Of these two options, the former is less expensive, while the latter is less risky. Take this example from The Young Student’s Companion: “I have a grey horse and a black horse take the former, and send the latter to my brother.” They usually appear in the sentence immediately following the sequence they are describing. Former refers to the first of a set, while latter refers to the second, or last, item. First things first: f ormer and latter are both terms that denote an item’s place in a two-part sequence. ![]()
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