idiom · neutral

ahead of one's time

/əˈhɛd əv wʌnz taɪm/a·HEAD·of·one's·TIME

speakingtask2

Having ideas or qualities that are more advanced than those typical of one's era.

Examples

Many considered her ideas radical at the time, but she was ahead of her time.

The inventor was ahead of his time and only later were his designs appreciated.

Artists who are ahead of their time often face criticism before being recognised.

Band 8 sentence

Many of her theories were ahead of her time, which explains why they were initially dismissed by contemporaries.

Collocations

  • be ahead of one's time in + -ing
  • considered ahead of her/his time

Word family

ahead of time phraseahead of schedule phrase

Common mistakes

ahead of timeahead of one's time

ahead of the timeahead of one's time

Say it for a higher band

5unusual6innovative7+ahead of one's time

Synonyms

innovative

Easily confused

ahead of schedule

The project was completed ahead of schedule.

Related words

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In Time

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