How to Say "beforehand" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “beforehand” is “previamente” — B1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
Examples
Debes leer las instrucciones previamente.
You must read the instructions beforehand.
Como se mencionó previamente, la reunión fue cancelada.
As previously mentioned, the meeting was canceled.
El sospechoso había sido arrestado previamente.
The suspect had been previously arrested.
The '-mente' Ending
Just like '-ly' in English, the ending '-mente' turns a description word into an action-description word (an adverb). Here, 'previo' (previous) becomes 'previamente' (previously).
Using 'previamente' vs 'antes'
Mistake: “Using 'previamente de' to say 'before something'.”
Correction: Use 'antes de' for specific things (antes de la cena) and 'previamente' as a standalone word (hazlo previamente).
Related Translations
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