French word

tôt

Pronunciation

IPA/to/

Meaning

  • adverbearly

Example

Il s'est levé tôt aujourd'hui.

He got up early today.

Illustration for tôt (early)

More examples

Nous devons partir tôt pour éviter les embouteillages.

We must leave early to avoid traffic jams.

Core concept

An event sits on the earlier side of its expected time, especially at the start of the day.

Common phrases

  • se lever tôt

    get up early

  • arriver tôt

    arrive early

  • tôt le matin

    early in the morning

Similar words

tard: At a later time than usual.
bientôt: In the near future.
en avance: Before the scheduled or expected time.
de bonne heure: During the early part of the day.

Definition in French

Signale qu'une action survient en un temps antérieur à l'habitude ou à l'attente, souvent employé pour parler d'un moment de la journée plutôt que de la vitesse.

Word origin

The modern adverb tôt developed from Old French tost, and the circumflex records the historical loss of s after the vowel.

Usage tips

  • In comparisons, plus tôt means earlier, while plus vite means faster or more quickly.

Opposites

Word lists with this word