(n.) In the western United States, one who settles on government land before it is legally open to settlement in order to gain the prior claim that the law gives to the first settler when the land is opened to settlement; hence, any one who does a thing prematurely or anticipates another in acting in order to gain an unfair advantage.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). sooner. Retrieved September 21, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/sooner/definitions/2064019 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "sooner" http://smartdefine.org/sooner/definitions/2064019 (accessed September 21, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, sooner, Smart Define, viewed 21 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/sooner/definitions/2064019>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "sooner" 28 May 2011. Web. 21 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/sooner/definitions/2064019> |