heretofore

adverb

here·​to·​fore ˈhir-tə-ˌfȯr 

ˌhir-tə-ˈfȯr

: up to this time : hitherto

heretofore unimaginable possibilities

I tell you now what we have heretofore kept secret from you

—A. C. Whitehead

Synonyms

• hitherto
• theretofore
• yet

Examples of heretofore in a Sentence

Heretofore her writing has never displayed such depth of feeling.

This technology has created heretofore unimaginable possibilities.

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s weed and benzos strewn on the coffee table, Ji-Na telling Fatima to run away fast, that she can’t be fixed, implying some kind of debilitating depression or mental illness Fatima’s Korean-French girlfriend was heretofore able to keep at bay. —Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 16 May 2025

And yet the invitation to explore Surrealism without Breton has the potential to be more generative than curators have heretofore allowed (even without entering into fantasies that his adversaries beat him up and chased him out of town). —Jonathon Keats, Forbes.com, 29 Apr. 2025

And, just like that, the audience gets to see a side of Ellie heretofore rarely revealed. —Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 31 Mar. 2025

And, just like that, the audience gets to see a side of Ellie heretofore rarely revealed. —Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 31 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for heretofore

• conquistador
• forevermore
• hereinbefore
• kinetochore
• kwashiorkor
• abhor
• abor
• adore
• afore
• ardour
• ashore
• backdoor

Kids Definition

heretofore

adverb

here·​to·​fore ˈhi(ə)rt-ə-ˌfō(ə)r 

-ˌfȯ(ə)r;

ˌhirt-ə-ˈfō(ə)r,

-ˈfȯ(ə)r

: up to this time