early
adverb
ˈɜːli 
ˈɜːrli 
1 near the beginning of a period of time, an event, a piece of work, etcearly in the week/year/season/morningThe best rooms go to those who book earliest.We arrived early the next day.We meet the hero quite early in the film.He started writing music as early as 1989.Opposite
late2 before the usual, expected or planned timeThe bus came five minutes early.I woke up early this morning.The baby arrived earlier than expected.early flowering plantsOpposite
late3 earlier before the present time or the time mentionedAs I mentioned earlier…a week earlierShe had seen him earlier in the day.Opposite
laterIdioms
early on
at an early stage of a situation, relationship, period of time, etc
I knew quite early on that I wanted to marry her.