- (comparative and superlative of `early'') more early than

- most early
"a fashion popular in earlier times"
"his earlier work reflects the influence of his teacher"
"Verdi''s earliest and most raucous opera"

- earlier in time

- previously
"I had known her before"
"as I said before"
"he called me the day before but your call had come even earlier"
"her parents had died four years earlier"
"I mentioned that problem earlier"

- before now
"why didn''t you tell me in the first place?"

- comparatives of `soon'' or `early''
"Come a little sooner, if you can"
"came earlier than I expected"