ahead of

ahead of
ahead of
This prepositional phrase has been in use since the 18c in the physical sense ‘in front of’ and from the following century in the figurative sense ‘better than, superior to (in quality, performance, etc)’. Its meaning in relation to time dates from the beginning of the 20c with a use by George Bernard Shaw in The Devil's Disciple (III.78: We are some minutes ahead of you already). Shaw is also credited with an early use (in 1934) of the cliché ahead of its (or one's) time (On the Rocks I.219: Women and men who are ahead of their time. They alone can lead the present into the future. They are ghosts from the future).
In a development dating from the 1980s, ahead of, with reference to time, has come to mean ‘before’ with the strongly anticipatory notion ‘in preparation for’ or ‘taking account of’

• (Seismic imaging of far-side solar activity allows us to anticipate the appearance of large active regions more than a week ahead of their arrival on the eastern solar limb —Internet website, 2002 [OEC]

• Some ISPs such as Wanadoo are investing in LLU but decline to reveal any significant detail because they don't want to give the game away ahead of a commercial launch —The Register, 2005).

This use, which originated in AmE, has a resounding ring of newspaper reports (primarily sport and finance) and is awkward and jargonistic in general usage, where it is unlikely to find much favour.

Modern English usage. 2014.

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  • ahead — a‧head [əˈhed] adverb if the value of something is ahead of a previous level, it has increased: • The shares were ahead more than 11% at one stage, and closed 85 up at 944p. * * * ahead UK US /əˈhed/ adverb ► at a better, higher, or greater level …   Financial and business terms

  • Ahead — A*head , adv. [Pref. a + head.] 1. In or to the front; in advance; onward. [1913 Webster] The island bore but a little ahead of us. Fielding. [1913 Webster] 2. Headlong; without restraint. [Obs.] L Estrange. [1913 Webster] {To go ahead}. (a) To… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • ahead — [ə hed′] adv., adj. 1. in or to the front 2. forward; onward 3. toward the future; in advance 4. winning or leading 5. having something as a profit or advantage ahead of in advance of; before ge …   English World dictionary

  • Ahead — steht für: Den alten Namen der Nero AG (vor 2005 noch Ahead Software AG), ein deutsches Software Unternehmen AHEAD (Munition), eine Air Burst Munition von Rheinmetall Ein System für ein Lenkkopflager beim Fahrrad …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • ahead — ► ADVERB 1) further forward in space or time. 2) in advance. 3) in the lead. ● ahead of Cf. ↑ahead of …   English terms dictionary

  • ahead — (adv.) 1620s, at the head, in front, from a on (see A (Cf. a ) (1)) + HEAD (Cf. head). Originally nautical. To be ahead of (one s) time attested by 1837 …   Etymology dictionary

  • ahead — [adv] in front or advance of advanced, advancing, ahead, along, ante, antecedently, at an advantage, at the head, before, beforehand, earlier, first, fore, foremost, forward, forwards, in the foreground, in the lead, leading, on, onward, onwards …   New thesaurus

  • ahead of — ► ahead of 1) before. 2) earlier than planned or expected. Main Entry: ↑ahead …   English terms dictionary

  • ahead — forward, *before Antonyms: behind Contrasted words: *after: *abaft, aft, astern …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • ahead — I [[t]əhe̱d[/t]] ADVERB USES ♦♦ (In addition to the uses shown below, ahead is used in phrasal verbs such as get ahead , go ahead , and press ahead .) 1) ADV: ADV after v, n ADV, ADV with cl Something that is ahead is in front of you. If you look …   English dictionary

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