[responsivevoice] erstwhile [/responsivevoice] [ urst-hwahyl ]
The word of the day is ‘erstwhile’.
The word is an adjective, i.e., it adds more information about the noun or sentence.
No, the word is an adjective. Therefore, it does not have a past form.
It means:
1. Former
2. Old
3. Past
4. Bygone
1. The pretty lips, erstwhile so prone to laughter, are now too serious by far.
2. Mr Hungerford and his erstwhile chum did not speak to each other at all now.
3. With blurred eyes, the erstwhile Willa Murdaugh turned to her informant.
4. It was pitiful to see the erstwhile Whittaker majority melt away.
5. The erstwhile silent ship was filled with tumult and clamour.
Some synonyms of today’s word are:
once, bygone, ex, late, old, one-time, past, preceding, previous, quondam, sometime, former, as was, then, prior, foregoing, whilom, prior, sometimes, already, heretofore, earlier, anterior, anciently, from yesteryear, long ago, primitive etc.
present, future, current, ongoing, after, lately, existing, active,
oncoming, ahead of the pack, ahead of time
Quotation:
By the 1980s, businesses had realized that environmental issues had a price tag. Increasingly, they balked. Reflexively, the anticorporate Left pivoted; Earth Day, erstwhile snow job, became an opportunity to denounce capitalist greed.
Charles C. Mann
Social Example:
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http://www.vocabularytoday.com/thorny-meaning-usage-quotes-and-social-examples/
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