Previously means before or earlier. It refers to what happened before the moment being talked about, and it sounds slightly formal: you'll find it in CVs, letters, reports and essays. For example, in a CV: Previously, I worked as a sales assistant.
How would you use previously?
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Previously, + past situation; have/had + previously + past participle; the previously + past participle + noun; period of time + previously (= before that moment in the past)
- Previously, the museum was open only at weekends; now it welcomes visitors every day.
- I have previously worked as a tour guide, so I'm comfortable speaking to large groups.
- When I met him in 2020, he had moved to London two years previously.
What changed
First versionI started learning Spanish three years previously, and now I can read simple books.
RevisionI started learning Spanish three years ago, and now I can read simple books.
It's tempting to say three years ago with previously, since both mean “before”. But ago counts back from today, while previously with a period of time counts back from another moment in the past that has already been mentioned: When I met him in 2020, he had moved to London two years previously, that is, in 2018. This sentence is about today (now I can read), so it needs ago.
In conversation, to say how things were before, people use used to: I used to live in Kazan. Previously there would sound like a line from a CV. But in a report or IELTS Writing Task 1, it fits perfectly: Sales, which had previously been stable, fell sharply in May.
Your turn
Our new manager knows the hotel business well because she ___ ran a large hotel in Dubai.
Show the answer
previously — The manager knows the hotel business well because she has run a hotel before. That's past experience, and previously introduces it. Afterwards means “after that” and needs an event for something to follow, but here past experience explains present knowledge.
Write two lines for a CV or for introducing yourself at a job interview: say what you do or where you study now and what you did before. Introduce the past with previously.
I am currently a project manager at a logistics company. Previously, I worked as a customer support specialist for three years.
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