Prior means existing or happening before. Prior knowledge, a prior engagement, without prior notice.
It goes before the noun and is formal — earlier and previous do the same work more plainly. Prior to is a formal alternative to before, common in reports and disliked by editors who prefer the shorter word. Prior convictions and prior experience are fixed phrases in law and recruitment. Note that a prior is also the head of a religious house, from the same Latin word, and that priority is its close relative.
1adjectivepriorExisting or happening before.
“No prior experience is needed and it helps enormously.”
synonyms: previous, earlier
prior is a position in time.
Latin prior means earlier or former, the comparative of an old word meaning before. The monastic prior was the superior — the one placed first — and the same Latin word therefore names both a time and a rank.
Proto-Indo-European
*per-
Proto-Indo-European
*pró — leading to, toward
Proto-Italic
*priōs — earlier, previous
Latin
prior — earlier, former, previous, prior; in front; (figurative) better, superior
English, today
prior
Built from
The adjective is a Latin prior (“earlier, former, previous, prior; in front; (figurative) better, superior”), from Proto-Italic priōs (“earlier, previous”) literally “more before”, ultimately from pri (“before”) (from Proto-Indo-European pró (“leading to, toward”) and its etymon per- (“before, in front; first”)) + -jōs. a doublet of before and fore and former. The adverb and noun are derived from the adjective.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA