the previous question
Preserved but no longer current.
The question whether the matter under debate shall be put to the vote or not. In Parliament, and debates generally, when one party wishes that a subject should be shelved it is customary to "move the previous question"; if this is carried the original dis- cussion comes to an end, for it has been de- cided that the matter shall not be put to the vote.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “the previous question” mean?
The question whether the matter under debate shall be put to the vote or not. In Parliament, and debates generally, when one party wishes that a subject should be shelved it is customary to "move the previous question"; if this is carried the original dis- cussion comes to an end, for it has been de- cided that the matter shall not be put to the vote.
Is “the previous question” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.