Timeline for Using earlier and later as adjectives
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
9 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 16, 2013 at 8:53 | comment | added | user230 | I'm having trouble figuring out what could be objectionable or unidiomatic about the OP's example. Interesting discussion! | |
| Jul 13, 2013 at 3:46 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | StoneyB: Yeah, right! But it's always possible the first one was done late in the morning, and the second one was done early afternoon. It's all relative (but on this particular usage I'm solidly behind @Wendikidd! :) | |
| Jul 13, 2013 at 1:38 | comment | added | StoneyB on hiatus | @FumbleFingers Clearly you do not realize that once a work has left the hands of a True Artist it is relegated forthwith to the Deep Past ;) Perhaps this was a painter of landscapes, for whom Early and Late in the day are quite different challenges. | |
| Jul 13, 2013 at 1:37 | comment | added | WendiKidd | @J.R. Agreed; I think there are some cases where earlier clearly works well as an adjective, but the OP's case in particular doesn't sound right to me. | |
| Jul 13, 2013 at 1:35 | comment | added | J.R.♦ | @WendiKidd: If I was talking about two paintings painted on the same day, I would probably distinguish them by using first, not earlier: But the first one I had to re-do, because Professor C hated it. I think that's maybe why it sounds odd. But earlier still works as an adjective: Of the Paleozoic and the Mesozoic eras, the Mesozoic is the earlier era. | |
| Jul 13, 2013 at 1:05 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | @StoneyB: I'm fine with an artist talking about his early work - so he can have earlier (and later) paintings. But for things produced on the same day, I'd much prefer plain old first. And can you really toggle early/earlier so casually? | |
| Jul 12, 2013 at 22:43 | comment | added | StoneyB on hiatus | @WendiKidd Well, your firstborn is of course more conventionally referred to as your "older" (or "elder") child. But I wrote my dissertation on the "early" plays of Bernard Shaw (it's right there in the subtitle), so using "early" with works of art sounds just fine to me. | |
| Jul 12, 2013 at 22:29 | comment | added | WendiKidd | Hmm. Do you think there's a bit of an idiomatic preference to when these sound right or wrong? To me personally, both of your examples sound fine, but the one in the OP's question sounds strange. And I wouldn't refer to my firstborn as my earlier child, but I would refer to a meeting I cancelled this morning as an earlier meeting. What do you think? | |
| Jul 12, 2013 at 22:27 | history | answered | StoneyB on hiatus | CC BY-SA 3.0 |