beforehand in the world

adjective

In prosperous circumstances; comfortably-off.

First used 17th–19th c.
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Meanings

adjectivebeforehand in the world (not comparable)

alternative beforehand with the world

  1. not comparableobsoleteIn prosperous circumstances; comfortably-off.First known use 17th–19th c.

    I shall see how much I am before-hand with the world in the spring […].

    1811, [Jane Austen], chapter VI, in Sense and Sensibility […], volume I, London: […] C[harles] Roworth, […], and published by T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 66
    1 more example

    I almoſt ſtarved myſelf, till I once more got before-hand in the world.

    1798, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, “[Maria: or, The] Wrongs of Woman”, in W[illiam] Godwin, editor, Posthumous Works of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. […], volume II, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […]; and G[eorge,] G[eorge] and J[ohn] Robinson, […], →OCLC, chapter XIII, page 98
Cite this entry
APA

beforehand in the world. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beforehand%20in%20the%20world

MLA

“beforehand in the world.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beforehand%20in%20the%20world. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “beforehand in the world,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beforehand%20in%20the%20world.

Source: beforehand in the world on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.