Spoken beforehand or previously; uttered in advance.
From Old English 'for-' (before) + 'spoken' (past participle of speak). The prefix 'for-' in Old English often indicated priority, excess, or completion of an action.
This word is a fossil from Middle English—it shows how Germanic languages used prefixes like 'for-' to modify meanings in ways that modern English now handles with separate words like 'previously' or 'already spoken.'
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