Meaning & use
ere
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Meanings
prepositionliteraryold-fashionedformal
Before a particular time or event, used mainly in poetry and old-fashioned writing.
Grammar: Followed by a noun or pronoun: ere dawn; ere long. It never takes an -ing form.
Patterns
- ere + noun
- ere long
The villagers gathered their harvest ere the first frost.
He promised to return ere nightfall.
Ere long, the truth will come out.
conjunctionliteraryold-fashionedformal
Before a particular action happens, used in literary or archaic contexts.
Grammar: Introduces a clause: ere he left. It is not used in everyday modern speech.
Patterns
- ere + subject + verb
Ere he could answer, she had turned and walked away.
They wanted to see the king ere they departed.
Ere the sun sets, we must reach the shore.
Common combinations
- ere long
- Ere long, the storm passed and the sky cleared.
- ere now
- I have told you ere now that patience is needed.
- ere the dawn
- The soldiers marched ere the dawn.
Synonyms and how they differ
- before
- The everyday word; use 'before' in normal speech and writing, and 'ere' only for a deliberately old or poetic effect.
- prior to
- More formal and common in modern business or legal contexts, but it is not interchangeable with 'ere' in poetry.
Opposites
Commonly confused: ere or e'er? ere or air?
ere vs e'er
A poetic contraction of 'ever'. 'Ere' means 'before', while 'e'er' means 'ever'.
ere vs air
Pronounced the same in British English but completely different in meaning; 'air' is the gas we breathe.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'ere' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Ere' means 'before' and is used before a noun or clause, as in 'ere the movie starts'. The other options wrongly use it as an adverb or verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ere”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.