previous

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Pronunciation

• (GA) IPA: /ˈpɹivi.əs/
• (RP) IPA: /ˈpɹiːvɪəs/

Adjective

previous

1. (not comparable) Prior; occurring before something else, either in time or order.

   • The dull sound […] previous to the storm, / Rolls o'er the muttering earth.

   He is no better than the previous Prime Minister.
2. (informal) Premature; acting or occurring too soon.

Synonyms

• former
• late
• old
• See also Thesaurus:former

Antonyms

• future
• following
• next
• succeeding

Translations

• French: préalable
• German: vorhergehend
• Italian: previo
• Portuguese: prévio
• Russian: предыду́щий
• Spanish: previo, anterior

Noun

previous

1. (informal, UK) An existing criminal record (short for "previous convictions")

   Synonyms: form

   It turned out the shoplifter had a lot of previous.

   • 1994, William J. Caunitz, Three complete novels: Black Sand; Suspects; One Police Plaza

     Simmons had eight previouses: robberies, burglaries, a couple of felonious assaults.

2. (informal, UK) A track record of similar behaviour.
   • November 2 2014, Daniel Taylor, "Sergio Agüero strike wins derby for Manchester City against 10-man United ↗," guardian.co.uk

     For that Smalling will have to do his time grazing in the scapegoat’s paddock because his contribution here supplied hard evidence of a player lacking the football intelligence that is needed at the highest level. He has previous on that front and it is difficult to find any mitigation for the way he scythed down James Milner when the first rule for a defender on a yellow card is not to dive in unless it is absolutely necessary.

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