hitherto

hi·ther·to
H4I1T1H4E1R1T1O1
UK/ˌhɪðəˈtuː/UK/ˈhɪðətuː/UK[ˌhɪðəˈtʰuː]UK[ˈhɪðətʰuː]

adverb

Up to this or that time.

Less commonScrabble 14

Meanings

adverbhitherto (not comparable)
  1. alsoformalnot comparablelawUp to this or that time.

    The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.

    1888, Karl Marx; Frederick [i.e., Friedrich] Engels, “Bourgeois and Proletarians”, in Samuel Moore, transl., edited by Frederick Engels, Manifesto of the Communist Party […] Authorized English Translation […], Chicago, Ill.: Charles H[ope] Kerr & Company, published [1910], →OCLC, page 12
    5 more examples

    All men att the begynnynge⸝ ſett forth goode wyne⸝ And when men be dronke⸝ then thatt which is worſſe: Butt thou haſt kept backe the goode wyne hetherto.

    1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, The Gospell off S. Jhon ij:[10], folio cxxj, recto

    [T]he greateſt and moſt active part of Mankind, has never hetherto been vvell contented vvith the preſent.

    1651, Thomas Hobbes, “Of the Office of the Soveraign Representative”, in Leviathan, or The Matter, Forme, & Power of a Common-wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civill, London: […] [William Wilson] for Andrew Crooke, […], →OCLC, 2nd part (Of Common-wealth), page 185

    But Charles, as vvell from unvvillingneſs to alienate a province of ſo much value, as from diſguſt at the Pope, vvho had hitherto refuſed to join in the vvar againſt Francis, rejected the propoſal.

    1769, William Robertson, “Book VII”, in The History of the Reign of the Emperor Charles V. […], volume III, London: […] W. and W. Strahan, for W[illiam] Strahan, T[homas] Cadell, […]; and J. Balfour, […], →OCLC, page 10

    The exhaustless conjecturings of that evening's full conversation, made such of the small party, as had hitherto been strangers, well acquainted with each other's turn of mind; […]

    1830, Anna Maria Porter, chapter X, in The Barony. […], volume III, London: […] [A[ndrew] & R[obert] Spottiswoode] for Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, […], →OCLC, page 460

    The results of this study argue for a greater endonormativity in Indian English than has hitherto been recognised.

    2014 March, James Lambert, “Diachronic Stability in Indian English Lexis”, in World Englishes, volume 33, number 1, Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 124

    Synonyms: up to now, heretofore · Antonyms: from now on, henceforth, anymore, any more, as of now, from now on, going forward, hereafter

  2. archaicliterarynot comparableUp to this place.

    Hither to ſhalt thou come, but no further, and here ſhalt thou laye downe thy proude and hye wawes.^([sic – meaning waves])

    1535 October 14 (Gregorian calendar), Myles Coverdale, transl., Biblia: The Byble, […] (Coverdale Bible), [Cologne or Marburg]: [Eucharius Cervicornus and Johannes Soter?], →OCLC, Job xxxviij:[11], folio xi, recto, column 1
    2 more examples

    The Archdeacon hath diuided it / Into three limits very equally: / England from Trent, and Seuerne hitherto, / By South and Eaſt is to my part aſsignd: […]

    c. 1597 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The History of Henrie the Fourth; […], quarto edition, London: […] P[eter] S[hort] for Andrew Wise, […], published 1598, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], signature F1, recto

    Thus far the very Reputation of Defending our Rights does Service to the Publick, it checks and diſcourages Tyranny, and is the Shore and Sea-dyke againſt Arbitrary Povver, and ſays to its proud VVaves, Hitherto ſhall ye come and no further.

    1694, Samuel Johnson, Notes upon the Phœnix Edition of the Pastoral Letter. Part I, London: Printed for the author, →OCLC, page 64
  3. archaicliterarynot comparableIn speech or writing: up to this point; thus far.

    "Really, Mr. Collins," cried Elizabeth with some warmth, "you puzzle me exceedingly. If what I have hitherto said can appear to you in the form of encouragement, I know not how to express my refusal in such a way as to convince you of its being one."

    1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], chapter XIX, in Pride and Prejudice: […], volume I, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 251
    1 more example

    The great man dovvne, you marke his fauourite flyes, / The poore aduanc'd, makes friends of enemies, / And hetherto doth loue on fortune tend, / For vvho not needes, ſhall neuer lacke a friend, / And vvho in vvant a hollovv friend doth try, / Directly ſeaſons him his enemy.

    c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke: […] (Second Quarto), London: […] I[ames] R[oberts] for N[icholas] L[ing] […], published 1604, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], signatures H2, recto – H2, verso
  4. not comparableobsoleteSynonym of hereto (“regarding this subject; to achieve this result; to this end”).

    And the eſpeciall intent of this meeting is, to receive our Biſhops directions for the adminiſtration of the Sacraments and Preaching, as his Articles informe us. Hitherto, if I can but hold me by my text, I hope not to fall into impertinencies.

    1635 August 27 (date delivered; Gregorian calendar), John Pocklington, Sunday No Sabbath. A Sermon Preached before the Lord Bishop of Lincolne, at His Lordships Visitation at Ampthill in the County of Bedford, Aug. 17. 1635, London: […] Robert Young, published 1636, →OCLC, page 2

    Synonyms: hereto

adjectivehitherto (not comparable)
  1. archaicnot comparableExisting or occurring before now; former, preceding, previous.
    1 more example

    At the same time, then, that the categorical imperative can enjoin nothing without liability to exception but disinterested obedience to itself, it will have no lack of definite content. The particular duties which it enjoins will at least be all those in the practice of which, according to the hitherto experience of men, some progress is made towards the fulfilment of man's capabilities, or some condition necessary to that progress is satisfied.

    1883 (date written), Thomas Hill Green, “Characteristics of the Moral Ideal”, in A[ndrew] C[ecil] Bradley, editor, Prolegomena to Ethics, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Clarendon Press, published 1883, →OCLC, paragraph 197, page 207

    Synonyms: antecedent, anterior, earlier, erstwhile, ex, foregone, former, old

Synonyms & antonyms

adverbSynonym of hereto (“regarding this subject; to achieve this result; to this end”).

Similar
Opposite
Broader

More synonyms by meaning

adverbused in negative statement to describe a situation that has existed up to this point or up to the present time

Similar

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Old Englishhider“to here, hither”
  2. Middle Englishhiderto“to the present time, until now; up to this point”
  3. Englishhitherto

The adverb is derived from Middle English hiderto (“to the present time, until now; up to this point”), from hider (“in this direction, to or toward this place; up to the present time, until now”) (from Old English hider (“to here, hither”)) + to (“in the direction of, toward; etc.”). By surface analysis, hither + to. The adjective is derived from the adverb.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic حَتَّى الْآن
  • حَتَّى الْآن (ḥattā l-ʔān)up to this or that time
Bulgarian досега́, дотук
  • досега́ (dosegá)up to this or that time
  • дотук (dotuk)up to this place
Chinese Mandarin 到目前為止 /到目前为止, 迄今
  • 到目前為止 /到目前为止 (dào mùqián wéizhǐ)up to this or that time
  • 迄今 (qìjīn)up to this or that time
  • 迄今為止 /迄今为止 (qìjīn wéizhǐ)up to this or that time
  • 至今 (zhìjīn)up to this or that time
Czech až dosud, doposud
  • až dosudup to this or that time
  • doposudup to this or that time
Danish hidtil
  • hidtilup to this or that time
Dutch tot dan toe, tot dusver
  • tot dan toeup to this or that time
  • tot dusverup to this or that time
  • tot dusverreup to this or that time
  • tot hiertoeup to this or that time
  • tot nu toeup to this or that time
Esperanto ĝis nun, ĝisnune
  • ĝis nunup to this or that time
  • ĝisnuneup to this or that time
Finnish aiemmin, siihen mennessä
  • aiemminup to this or that time
  • siihen mennessäup to this or that time
  • sitä ennenup to this or that time
  • tähän mennessäup to this or that time
  • tähän astiup to this place
French jusqu'alors, jusqu'à maintenant
  • jusqu'alorsup to this or that time
  • jusqu'à maintenantup to this or that time
  • jusqu'à présentup to this or that time
  • jusqu'iciup to this or that time
German bis dahin, bis dato
  • bis dahinup to this or that time
  • bis datoup to this or that time
  • bisherup to this or that time
  • bis jetztup to this or that time
  • bislangup to this or that time
  • bis zu diesem Zeitpunktup to this or that time
  • bis zum jetzigen Zeitpunktup to this or that time
  • zuvorup to this or that time
Hebrew עד כה
  • עד כהup to this or that time
Hungarian addig, eddig
  • addigup to this or that time
  • eddigup to this or that time
Indonesian hingga kini, sampai saat ini
  • hingga kiniup to this or that time
  • sampai saat iniup to this or that time
  • sampai sekarangup to this or that time
Italian fino ad ora, fino allora
  • fino ad oraup to this or that time
  • fino alloraup to this or that time
  • fino a quiup to this or that time
  • finoraup to this or that time
  • fin quiup to this or that time
Japanese 今まで, これまで
  • 今まで (imamade)up to this or that time
  • これまで (koremade)up to this or that time
  • これまでのところ (koremade no tokoro)up to this or that time
Korean 여태
  • 여태 (yeotae)up to this or that time
Latin adhūc, aliquando
  • adhūcup to this or that time
  • aliquandoup to this or that time
  • hactenusup to this or that time
  • hucusqueup to this or that time
  • illatenusup to this or that time
Norwegian hittil
  • hittilup to this or that time
Persian تاکنون
  • تاکنون (tâ-konun)up to this or that time
Polish dotąd, dotychczas
  • dotądup to this or that time
  • dotychczasup to this or that time
Portuguese até agora
  • até agoraup to this or that time
Romanian până acum, până în acest moment
  • până acumup to this or that time
  • până în acest momentup to this or that time
Russian доны́не, до сих по́р
  • доны́не (donýne)up to this or that time
  • до сих по́р (do six pór)up to this or that time
  • подне́сь (podnésʹ)up to this or that time
  • пока́ (poká)up to this or that time
  • пока́ что (poká što)up to this or that time
Scottish Gaelic thuige seo
  • thuige seoup to this or that time
Spanish en ese entonces, hasta ahora
  • en ese entoncesup to this or that time
  • hasta ahoraup to this or that time
  • hasta aquíup to this or that time
  • hasta este momentoup to this or that time
Swedish dittills, hitintills
  • dittillsup to this or that time
  • hitintillsup to this or that time
  • hittillsup to this or that time
Turkish -e kadar, o ana kadar
  • -e kadarup to this or that time
  • o ana kadarup to this or that time
Welsh hyd yn hyn
  • hyd yn hynup to this or that time
Cite this entry
APA

hitherto. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hitherto

MLA

“hitherto.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hitherto. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hitherto,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hitherto.

Source: hitherto on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.