• Adj: at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time; examples: "early morning", "an early warning", "early diagnosis", "an early death", "took early retirement", "an early spring", "early varieties of peas and tomatoes mature before most standard varieties"
• Adj: being or occurring at an early stage of development; examples: "in an early stage", "early forms of life", "early man", "an early computer"
• Adj: belonging to the distant past; examples: "the early inhabitants of Europe", "former generations", "in other times"
• Adj: very young; example: "at an early age"
• Adj: of an early stage in the development of a language or literature; examples: "the Early Hebrew alphabetical script is that used mainly from the 11th to the 6th centuries B.C.", "Early Modern English is represented in documents printed from 1476 to 1700"
• Adj: expected in the near future; example: "look for an early end to the negotiations"
• Adv: during an early stage; example: "early on in her career"
• Adv: before the usual time or the time expected; examples: "she graduated early", "the house was completed ahead of time"
• Adv: in good time; example: "he awoke betimes that morning"
I got into theatre very early, so yes I was surrounded by gay people quite early and frequently.
I feel that I'm leaving Williamstown too early, but I'd rather leave too early than too late.