■ adverb
1》 in or after a short time.
↘early.
2》 readily (used to indicate a preference).
Phrases
no ~er than as ~ as; at the very moment that.
~er or later eventually.
Derivatives
~ish adverb
Origin
OE sōna 'immediately', of W. Gmc origin.
Usage
The phrase no ~er should be followed by than rather than when in standard English: we had no ~er arrived than we had to leave , not we had no ~er arrived when we had to leave . This is because ~er is a comparative, and comparatives should be followed by than .