former

/ˈfɔːmə(r)/ adj.
标准词条 CET-4CET-6IELTS
一句话记住

以前的；前者的

释义与例句

adj. 以前的；前者的
having existed or held a position at an earlier time, or being the first of two people or things mentioned
  1. The former president gave a lecture at the university.
    这位前总统在大学做了一场讲座。
  2. Her former colleagues still keep in touch with her.
    她以前的同事仍与她保持联系。
展开其余 1 条例句
  1. Of the two proposals, the former is less expensive.
    在这两项提议中，前者成本较低。

词源与构词

记忆钩子 former president 是“前总统”；the former... the latter... 是“前者……后者……”，latter 不要拼成 later。

词族与关联词

词族（同一词根派生出的不同词性或形式）
  • formerly 以前；从前
    former 的副词形式，用于说明过去曾经如此而现在通常已改变。
同义词
  • previous 先前的；以前的
    previous 泛指时间或顺序上在前的；former 更强调曾经拥有某身份或状态，也可与 latter 搭配表示“前者”。
    The previous owner had renovated the kitchen. 以前的房主翻新过厨房。
易混词（形近或义近，注意区别）
  • latter 后者的；后半的
    former 指两者中先提到的“前者”；latter 指后提到的“后者”。表示“后者”时不要用 later。
    Between the train and the bus, the latter is cheaper. 在火车和公交车之间，后者更便宜。
常见搭配
  • former employee 前雇员
    A former employee reported the safety violations. 一名前雇员举报了这些安全违规行为。
  • former president 前总统；前任主席
    The former president remains an influential public figure. 这位前总统仍是一位有影响力的公众人物。
  • the former 前者
    We can expand or relocate; the former would cost less. 我们可以扩建或搬迁，前者成本更低。