the former

pron the first mentioned of two things or people 前者: If I had to choose between fish and chicken I'd prefer the former, ie fish. 若让我在鱼和鸡之间选择其一, 我要前者（即鱼）.

the disinherited, the dispossessed, the dog-star, the East End, the Eastern Bloc, the elect, the electric chair, the English Channel (also the Channel), the Eternal City, the evening star, the fair sex, the faithful, the fallen, the Far East, the Far West, the few, the fine print, the first person, the First World War (also World War I), the foregoing, the front bench, the front line, the generation gap, The Globe, the golden mean, the Grand National, the Great Bear, the Great Lakes, the Great War, the Green Party, the gripes, the Gulf Stream, the handicapped, the high jump, the high sea (also the high seas), the Himalayas, the Holy City, the Holy Father, the Holy Ghost, the Holy Grail,