Etymology

erewhile

E1R1E1W4H4I1L1E1

Today it means: Some time ago; beforehand; formerly. Full definition →

English while ← Middle English er ← Old English ǣr
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ey-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₂éyeri
  3. Proto-Germanic*airi
  4. Proto-Germanic*airiz
  5. Old Englishǣr
  6. Middle Englisher
  7. Englishere
  8. Englishwhile
  9. English todayerewhile

From ere + while.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.