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ante

before; in the face of; faced with

preposition AHN-teh Common

Origin: From Latin ante 'before, in front of'.

Usage Note

Ante is primarily formal or written and expresses facing a situation, authority, or obligation: comparecer ante el juez 'to appear before the judge'. In everyday speech it is largely replaced by frente a or delante de for physical position and ante is reserved for figurative contexts. The prefix ante- also appears in words like anteponer 'to put before' and anteayer 'the day before yesterday'.

Examples

"Se quedó inmóvil ante la noticia."

Natural Translation

She froze in the face of the news.

Literal Translation

She-stayed immobile before the news

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