Library / English Dictionary

SOONER

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A native or resident of Oklahoma

Synonyms:

Oklahoman; Sooner

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("Sooner" is a kind of...):

American (a native or inhabitant of the United States)

 II. (adverb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

More readily or willingly

Example:

I'd sooner die than give up

Synonyms:

preferably; rather; sooner

Classified under:

Adverbs

Sense 2

Meaning:

Comparatives of 'soon' or 'early'

Example:

came earlier than I expected

Synonyms:

earlier; sooner

Classified under:

Adverbs

Credits

 Context examples: 

The sooner ovarian cancer is found and treated, the better your chance for recovery.

(Ovarian Cancer, NIH: National Cancer Institute)

Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

Airway Questionnaire 20 (AQ20) Does your chest trouble make you go home sooner than others after a night out?

(AQ20 - Chest Trouble Make You Go Home Sooner Than Others, NCI Thesaurus)

"We will carry you," replied the King, and no sooner had he spoken than two of the Monkeys caught Dorothy in their arms and flew away with her.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

But I watched the criminal news, knowing that sooner or later I should get him.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Our hope was that, by taking train, we might get to Beckenham as soon or sooner than the carriage.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

She even considered it the hopeful side of the situation, believing that sooner or later it would arouse him and compel him to abandon his writing.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Then they will not lose a minute, for the sooner they do their work the longer time they will have for their escape.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

D'ye think he'd sooner stay in California?

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

The sooner you start (as close to the date that falls after the eclipse appears), the better, for your results will have the support of the eclipse’s energy.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)