1. before
2. sooner
3. in the first place

1. in the beginning, to begin with, originally, earliest
2. early, early
3. aboriginal, primal, primeval, primaeval, primordial, advance, beforehand, archean, archaean, archeozoic, archaeozoic, azoic, earliest, earlyish, matutinal, premature, untimely, previous, premature, proterozoic, proto, wee, first, early
4. archaic, primitive, new, young, crude, primitive, rude, embryonic, embryotic, incipient, inchoate, precocious, early
5. former, other, past, early
6. young, immature, early
7. Old, early
7. future