antecedent
Word family verbantecedenounantecedenceadjectiveantecedentadverbantecedently
an·te·ced·ent /ˌæntəˈsiːdənt/ noun [countableC] 1 formalBEFORE an event, organization, or thing that is similar to the one you have mentioned but existed earlier 先例 historical antecedents 历史先例
2. antecedents [plural] formalFAMILY the people in your family who lived a long time ago 祖先 SYN ancestors —antecedent adjectiveadj
Origin antecedent (1300-1400) Latin present participle of
antecedere, from
ante- (
→ ANTE-) +
cedere “to go”