WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Pri"or
Part of Speech : a.
Etymology : [L. prior former, previous, better, superior; compar. corresponding to primus first, and pro for. See Former, and cf. Prime, a., and Pre-, Pro-.]
Definition : Defn: Preceding in the order of time; former; antecedent; anterior; previous; as, a prior discovery; prior obligation; -- used elliptically in cases like the following: he lived alone [in the time] prior to his marriage.
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913

Pronunciation : Pri"or
Part of Speech : n.
Etymology : [OE. priour, OF. priour, prior, priur, F. prieur, from L. prior former, superior. See Prior, a.] (Eccl.)
Definition : Defn: The superior of a priory, and next below an abbot in dignity. Conventical, or Conventual, prior, a prior who is at the head of his own house. See the Note under Priory. -- Claustral prior, an official next in rank to the abbot in a monastery; prior of the cloisters.
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913