a while ago

ADVERB

previously

Synonyms

STRONGEST

already formerly heretofore hitherto long ago once then

STRONG

antecedently

WEAK

ahead ante at one time away back back back when before beforehand erstwhile fore forward in advance in anticipation in days gone by in the past precedently time was until now

Antonyms

WEAK

currently future later presently

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

They said they stopped feeding the animals a while ago.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2026

So how’s it all going since we last checked in a while ago?

From Slate • Apr. 18, 2026

My mother passed away a while ago and a couple of properties were inherited.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 18, 2025

We also stopped quite a while ago and Mercedes and Red Bull are the two teams that pushed for a bit longer so it is not a complete surprise.”

From Barron's • Oct. 24, 2025

“Jack told you—” “Called a while ago and said—among other things— that if you weren’t already on the warpath you’d soon be. From what I heard, you already are.”

From "Go Set a Watchman: A Novel" by Harper Lee

a while ago

Example Sentences

Related Words