Afore

Afore is an English adverb and preposition meaning before, in time or place. Today, it is generally regarded as archaic or literary, and is most often found in poetry, historical writing, or stylized prose rather than everyday speech.

Originating from Old English afor, a form of fore meaning before, afore shares its sense with the modern words fore and before. It survives primarily as a historical or poetic variant and in fixed compounds such as aforementioned.

Usage and examples: In older texts, afore expresses temporal or spatial precedence. It appears in phrases like afore this day or aforestated passages, and in the common compound aforementioned, which means previously mentioned. In contemporary writing, it is rarely used except for stylistic effect or to evoke an archaic tone.

Status: In modern standard English, afore is largely obsolete outside specialized contexts, though it can appear in quotations, dialect writing, or works aiming for an antiquarian flavor. It remains a recognized entry in dictionaries and is studied as part of historical language and literature.

See also: aforementioned, fore, before.