Standard Lemma guide

hitherto

adj · adv · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˌhɪðəˈtuː/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈhɪðətuː/
  • Received-Pronunciation: [ˌhɪðəˈthuː]
  • Received-Pronunciation: [ˈhɪðəthuː]
  • General-American: /ˈhɪðəɹˌtu/
  • General-American: /ˌhɪðəɹˈtu/
  • General-American: [ˈhɪðəɹˌthu]
  • General-American: [ˌhɪðəɹˈthu]
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: HH IH1 DH ER2 T UW1 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Existing or occurring before now; former, preceding, previous.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: antecedent, anterior, earlier, erstwhile, ex, foregone, former, hitherto, old, olden, past, preceding, precedent, previous, prior, quondam, sometime, used-to-be, whilom

Antonyms: none provided

2

adv

Meaning 2

Up to this or that time.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: also, formal, not-comparable

Topics: law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: up to now, heretofore

Antonyms: from now on, henceforth, anymore, any more, as of now, going forward, hereafter, henceforward, henceforwards, in future, in the future, moving forward

3

adv

Meaning 3

Up to this place.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, literary, not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adv

Meaning 4

In speech or writing: up to this point; thus far.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, literary, not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

adv

Meaning 5

Synonym of hereto (“regarding this subject; to achieve this result; to this end”).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable, obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: hereto

Antonyms: none provided

6

adverb

Meaning 6

used in negative statement to describe a situation that has existed up to this point or up to the present time

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • So far he hasn't called
  • the sun isn't up yet

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: so far, thus far, up to now, heretofore, as yet, yet, til now, until now

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

The adverb is derived from Middle English hiderto (“to the present time, until now; up to this point”), from hider (“in this direction, to or toward this place; up to the present time, until now”) (from Old English hider (“to here, hither”)) + to (“in the direction of, toward; etc.”). By surface analysis, hither + to. The adjective is derived from the adverb.

Across languages

Translations

99 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: حَتَّى الْآن (ḥattā l-ʔān) — up to this or that time
  • Bulgarian: досега́ (dosegá) — up to this or that time
  • Chinese Mandarin: 到目前為止 /到目前为止 (dào mùqián wéizhǐ) — up to this or that time
  • Chinese Mandarin: 迄今 (qìjīn) — up to this or that time
  • Chinese Mandarin: 迄今為止 /迄今为止 (qìjīn wéizhǐ) — up to this or that time
  • Chinese Mandarin: 至今 (zhìjīn) — up to this or that time
  • Czech: až dosud — up to this or that time
  • Czech: doposud — up to this or that time
  • Danish: hidtil — up to this or that time
  • Dutch: tot dan toe — up to this or that time
  • Dutch: tot dusver — up to this or that time
  • Dutch: tot dusverre — up to this or that time
  • Dutch: tot hiertoe — up to this or that time
  • Dutch: tot nu toe — up to this or that time
  • Esperanto: ĝis nun — up to this or that time
  • Esperanto: ĝisnune — up to this or that time
  • Faroese: higartil — up to this or that time
  • Finnish: aiemmin — up to this or that time
  • Finnish: siihen mennessä — up to this or that time
  • Finnish: sitä ennen — up to this or that time
  • Finnish: tähän mennessä — up to this or that time
  • French: jusqu'alors — up to this or that time
  • French: jusqu'à maintenant — up to this or that time
  • French: jusqu'à présent — up to this or that time
  • French: jusqu'ici — up to this or that time
  • Georgian: ამ დრომდე (am dromde) — up to this or that time
  • Georgian: აქამდე (akamde) — up to this or that time
  • Georgian: აქამომდე (akamomde) — up to this or that time
  • Georgian: დღემდე (dɣemde) — up to this or that time
  • Georgian: უწინ (uc̣in) — up to this or that time
  • German: bis dahin — up to this or that time
  • German: bis dato — up to this or that time
  • German: bisher — up to this or that time
  • German: bis jetzt — up to this or that time
  • German: bislang — up to this or that time
  • German: bis zu diesem Zeitpunkt — up to this or that time
  • German: bis zum jetzigen Zeitpunkt — up to this or that time
  • German: zuvor — up to this or that time
  • Hebrew: עד כה — up to this or that time
  • Hungarian: addig — up to this or that time
  • Hungarian: eddig — up to this or that time
  • Indonesian: hingga kini — up to this or that time
  • Indonesian: sampai saat ini — up to this or that time
  • Indonesian: sampai sekarang — up to this or that time
  • Italian: fino ad ora — up to this or that time
  • Italian: fino allora — up to this or that time
  • Italian: fino a qui — up to this or that time
  • Italian: finora — up to this or that time
  • Italian: fin qui — up to this or that time
  • Japanese: 今まで (imamade) — up to this or that time
  • Japanese: これまで (koremade) — up to this or that time
  • Japanese: これまでのところ (koremade no tokoro) — up to this or that time
  • Korean: 여태 (yeotae) — up to this or that time
  • Latin: adhūc — up to this or that time
  • Latin: aliquando — up to this or that time
  • Latin: hactenus — up to this or that time
  • Latin: hucusque — up to this or that time
  • Latin: illatenus — up to this or that time
  • Macedonian: досега (dosega) — up to this or that time
  • Norwegian: hittil — up to this or that time
  • Occitan: fins a aquel moment — up to this or that time
  • Occitan: fins ara — up to this or that time
  • Pannonian Rusyn: дотераз (doteraz) — up to this or that time
  • Pannonian Rusyn: потераз (poteraz) — up to this or that time
  • Persian: تاکنون (tâ-konun) — up to this or that time
  • Polish: dotąd — up to this or that time
  • Polish: dotychczas — up to this or that time
  • Portuguese: até agora — up to this or that time
  • Romanian: până acum — up to this or that time
  • Romanian: până în acest moment — up to this or that time
  • Russian: доны́не (donýne) — up to this or that time
  • Russian: до сих по́р (do six pór) — up to this or that time
  • Russian: подне́сь (podnésʹ) — up to this or that time
  • Russian: пока́ (poká) — up to this or that time
  • Russian: пока́ что (poká što) — up to this or that time
  • Scottish Gaelic: thuige seo — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: до̀сад — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: до̀сада — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: до̀тад — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: до̀тада — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: dòsad — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: dòsada — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: dòtad — up to this or that time
  • Serbo-Croatian: dòtada — up to this or that time
  • Slovene: do zdaj — up to this or that time
  • Spanish: en ese entonces — up to this or that time
  • Spanish: hasta ahora — up to this or that time
  • Spanish: hasta aquí — up to this or that time
  • Spanish: hasta este momento — up to this or that time
  • Swedish: dittills — up to this or that time
  • Swedish: hitintills — up to this or that time
  • Swedish: hittills — up to this or that time
  • Telugu: అప్పటివరకు (appaṭivaraku) — up to this or that time
  • Telugu: ఇప్పటివరకు (ippaṭivaraku) — up to this or that time
  • Turkish: -e kadar — up to this or that time
  • Turkish: o ana kadar — up to this or that time
  • Welsh: hyd yn hyn — up to this or that time
  • Bulgarian: дотук (dotuk) — up to this place
  • Finnish: tähän asti — up to this place
Real reading context

hitherto in complete knowledge articles