Subscriber login


Forgot your password?

Library card login

Other

already

Pronunciation: /ɔːlˈrɛdi/
Translate already | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of already

adverb

  • 1before or by now or the time in question:Anna has suffered a great deal already
  • as surprisingly soon or early as this:it was already past four o' clock
  • 2North American informal used after a word or phrase to express impatience:enough already with these crazy kids and their wacky dances!

Origin:

Middle English: from all (as an adverb) + ready; already (sense 2) is influenced by Yiddish use

Spelling rule

When adding all- to words to make new words, al- should be spelled with only one l.

already in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of already in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

  |  Cite

Word of the day

epithalamium

/ ˌɛpɪθəˈleɪmɪəm /
noun
a song or poem celebrating a marriage …