as in early
before the usual or expected time
a baby born three weeks prematurely
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Recent Examples of prematurely
In the Making The babies — Thomas Ray, Shane Austin and Beaux Bentley — were delivered prematurely at 31 weeks gestation.
—
Ryan Brennan
april 29, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2026
Sterling’s career ended prematurely by injury after making five Pro Bowls in his seven seasons with the Packers.
—Todd Holcomb, AJC.com, 28 Apr. 2026
But babies who are infected have a 90% chance of developing chronic hepatitis B infection, and about a quarter of those who do will die prematurely from liver disease triggered by the infection.
—Helen Branswell, STAT, 27 Apr. 2026
Parsons had 12½ sacks in 14 games last year before suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament, an injury that ended his 2025 season prematurely and likely will prevent him from being available for the start of the next season.
—Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 25 Apr. 2026
His season ended prematurely with a concussion and the 2026 season will amount to a do-over.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 25 Apr. 2026
Hospitals, insurance companies and doctors have been known to prematurely dump patients into hospice for financial reasons, Dorio said.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2026
This comes less than a year after Lane discovered a blood clot in the shoulder of his throwing arm, which ended his season prematurely.
—Gina Kalsi, PEOPLE, 23 Apr. 2026
This bipartisan legislation protects people with kidney disease from private insurance pushing dialysis patients off their plan prematurely.
—Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 13 Apr. 2026
Ryan Brennan
april 29, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2026
Sterling’s career ended prematurely by injury after making five Pro Bowls in his seven seasons with the Packers.
—Todd Holcomb, AJC.com, 28 Apr. 2026
But babies who are infected have a 90% chance of developing chronic hepatitis B infection, and about a quarter of those who do will die prematurely from liver disease triggered by the infection.
—Helen Branswell, STAT, 27 Apr. 2026
Parsons had 12½ sacks in 14 games last year before suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament, an injury that ended his 2025 season prematurely and likely will prevent him from being available for the start of the next season.
—Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 25 Apr. 2026
His season ended prematurely with a concussion and the 2026 season will amount to a do-over.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 25 Apr. 2026
Hospitals, insurance companies and doctors have been known to prematurely dump patients into hospice for financial reasons, Dorio said.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2026
This comes less than a year after Lane discovered a blood clot in the shoulder of his throwing arm, which ended his season prematurely.
—Gina Kalsi, PEOPLE, 23 Apr. 2026
This bipartisan legislation protects people with kidney disease from private insurance pushing dialysis patients off their plan prematurely.
—Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 13 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prematurely
early
Adverb
-
By the time Game 6 rolled around, Minnesota was without star Anthony Edwards, sharpshooter Donte DiVincenzo and even Ayo Dosunmu, who had stepped up earlier in the series in the absence of the latter duo.—
Dan Santaromita,
New York Times,
2 May 2026
-
News of the withdrawal was reported earlier by The New York Times, Reuters and other outlets.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Prematurely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prematurely. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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