antecedent

noun

an·​te·​ced·​ent ˌan-tə-ˈsē-dᵊnt 

plural antecedents

1

grammar : a substantive word, phrase, or clause whose denotation is referred to by a pronoun that typically follows the substantive (such as John in "Maria saw John and called to him")

A French pronoun must agree in gender and number with its antecedent.

broadly : a word or phrase replaced by a substitute

2

a

: a preceding event, condition, or cause

events that were antecedents of the war

People do things because an antecedent prompts that behavior.

—George Bradt

b

antecedents plural : the significant events, conditions, and traits of one's earlier life

… he had been taught how to soldier in the French colonial paratroops … and he was proud of his antecedents.

—Neil Sheehan

3

a

: predecessor

especially : a model or stimulus for later developments

The harpsichord was the antecedent of the piano.

… a tasting menu that underscores the debt New Orleans cuisine owes West African and Caribbean antecedents.

—Brett Anderson

b

antecedents plural : ancestors, parents

He was researching his Scottish antecedents.

4

: the conditional element in a proposition (such as if A in "if A, then B")

5

mathematics : the first term of a mathematical ratio

Did you know?

A basic principle of good writing is to keep your antecedents clear. Pronouns are useful when you want to avoid repeating a noun; for example, instead of saying "Noah Webster published his first dictionary in 1806, and Noah Webster published his second dictionary in 1828," we replace the second "Noah Webster" with "he." But writers sometimes leave their antecedents unclear: in "Noah Webster and Samuel Johnson both wrote dictionaries, but his was bigger," it is unclear whose dictionary was bigger. (It was Webster's.) This problem can occur not only with he and she but also with they, them, it, this, those, and that. And keep in mind too that antecedent isn't just a grammar term. The antecedents of an event are what preceded, or led up to, the event, and your own antecedents are your parents and ancestors. The word has distinct meanings in math and logic as well.

Synonyms of antecedent

• cause

Examples of antecedent in a Sentence

“John” is the antecedent of the pronoun “him” in “Mary saw John and thanked him.”

what are the antecedents of the American Revolutionary War?

Recent Examples on the Web

Her model suggests that antecedents, physiological state and consequences continuously influence one another, with behavior emerging as the result of that interaction. —Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 2 June 2026

The ebullient parody’s obvious antecedent is Airplane! —David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 1 June 2026

After millennia of antecedents, this latest trend of trying to enlist God into warfare didn’t start in America, of course. —Andreas Kluth, Twin Cities, 3 Apr. 2026

But in addition to being a catastrophe, what unfolded here is also an antecedent to a renaissance. —New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Medieval Latin & Latin; Medieval Latin antecedent-, antecedens, from Latin, what precedes, from neuter of antecedent-, antecedens, present participle of antecedere to go before, from ante- + cedere to go

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for antecedent

• precedent

Kids Definition

antecedent

1 of 2 noun

an·​te·​ced·​ent ˌant-ə-ˈsēd-ənt 

1

: a noun, pronoun, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun

in "the house that we live in," "house" is the antecedent of "that"

2

: an event or cause coming before something

3

plural : one's ancestors or parents

antecedent

2 of 2 adjective

: coming earlier in time or order

antecedently adverb

Legal Definition

antecedent

adjective

an·​te·​ce·​dent

ˌan-tə-ˈsēd-ᵊnt

: earlier in time or order