# hysteron proteron

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. A figure of speech in which a phrase that should come last is put first; hysterology.
2. An inversion or reversal of the natural order of things.

## Etymology
From Ancient Greek, from ὕστερον (hústeron, “latter, arriving late”) + πρότερον (próteron, “former, before”).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/hysteron-proteron