Former nobleman, one with Queen Elizabeth (7)
I believe the answer is:
earlier
'former' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'nobleman one with queen elizabeth' is the wordplay.
'nobleman' becomes 'earl' (earl is a kind of nobleman).
'one with' becomes 'i' (I've seen this in other clues).
'queen elizabeth' becomes 'er' (abbreviation for Elizabeth Regina).
'earl'+'i'+'er'='EARLIER'
(Other definitions for earlier that I've seen before include "Sooner - previously" , "Beforehand" , "Nearer the beginning" , "Further in advance" , "Further back in time" .)