former

adj

1. (not-comparable)Previous.

   “A former president”

   “the former East Germany”

   “At half-past nine on this Saturday evening, the parlour of the Salutation Inn, High Holborn, contained most of its customary visitors.[…]In former days every tavern of repute kept such a room for its own select circle, a club, or society, of habitués, who met every evening, for a pipe and a cheerful glass.”

   “The former-slaves-turned-abolitionists Quobna Ottobah Cugoano and Olaudah Equiano were the chief organizers of the Sons of Africa.”

   “Another ANC splinter party, the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK), led by former President Jacob Zuma appears to be on course to do well in KwaZulu-Natal, the eastern coastal province where Durban is located.”

2. (not-comparable)First of aforementioned two items. Used with the, often without a noun.

   “The former is a good idea but the latter is not.”

   “We have two cars, a red one and a blue one. We won the former on a game show.”

   “Bananas are tastier than parsnips, but the latter’s nutritional value is higher than the former’s.”

noun

1. Someone who forms something; a maker; a creator or founder.

   “Dave was the former of the company.”

2. An object used to form something, such as a template, gauge, or cutting die.

   “The brick arch was built using a wooden former.”

3. (British)Someone in, or of, a certain form (class).

   “Fifth-former.”

   “Sixth-former.”