antecedent

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noun an·te·ced·ent \ ˌan-tə-ˈsē-dᵊnt \

Definition of antecedent

1 grammar :a substantive word, phrase, or clause whose denotation is referred to by a pronoun (such as John in "Mary saw John and called to him"); broadly :a word or phrase replaced by a substitute

2 a :a preceding event, condition, or cause

events that were antecedents of the war

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

3 a :predecessor; especially :a model or stimulus for later developments

The sackbut was the antecedent of the trombone.

b antecedents plural :ancestors, parents

He was proud of 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

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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 of antecedent from the Web

At least one of the city names in Essos, the Eastern continent Daenerys traverses, has direct antecedents in Howard’s novels.

— adrian daub, Longreads, "Here at the End of All Things," 24 Aug. 2017
But an antecedent question should be: What in the first place is causing these people to migrate thousands of miles, often at the risk of their own lives?

— sami j. karam, National Review, "A Different Kind of Border Wall," 21 Aug. 2017
Toward the end of our conversation, Bartoletti points out a particularly chilling antecedent to the uniforms seen in Charlottesville.

— cam wolf, GQ, "The New Uniform of White Supremacy," 17 Aug. 2017
Diets, exercise, and various versions of self-care have been around forever: Antecedents are found at an Austrian spa still famous for its enemas and in 1970s L.A., where wheatgrass was just as popular as cocaine.

— amy larocca, The Cut, "The Wellness Epidemic," 27 June 2017
Twitter, for example, came into the world amid infighting between the founders and employees of its antecedent company, Odeo.

— vanityfair.com, VanityFair.com, "Why Uber Might Have to Fire Travis Kalanick," 16 June 2017
The narrative has many other sub-stories, occasionally pinballing between them without transition or antecedent.

— boris fishman, New York Times, "Just Another Nutty June Weekend in the Rockaways," 6 June 2017
Since its founding, the military has instituted measures to distance itself from, and stigmatize, its Nazi-era antecedent.

— melissa eddy, New York Times, "Pro-Nazi Soldiers in German Army Raise Alarm," 10 May 2017
Much like their obvious antecedent Duran Duran, the 1975 introduces young admirers to slyly seditious funk conceived by American bands like the Isley Brothers.

— by bill brownlee, kansascity.com, "It’s OK to like the 1975," 1 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'antecedent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

A basic principle of clear writing is to keep your antecedents clear. Pronouns are often used in order not to repeat a noun (so instead of saying "Sheila turns 22 tomorrow, and Sheila is having a party", we replace the second "Sheila" with "she"). But sloppy writers sometimes leave their antecedents unclear (for instance, "Sheila helps Kathleen out, but she doesn't appreciate it", where it isn't clear who "she" is). Watch out for this possible problem when using not just he and she but also they, them, it, this, *and *that. And keep in mind that antecedent isn't just a grammar term. You may talk about the antecedents of heart disease (such as bad eating habits), the antecedents of World War II (such as the unwise Treaty of Versailles), and even your own antecedents (your mother, grandfather, etc.).

Origin and Etymology of antecedent

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

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First Known Use: 15th century

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antecedent Synonyms

Synonyms

cause, causality, causation, occasion, reason

Other Grammar and Linguistics Terms

ablaut, allusion, anacoluthon, diacritic, gerund, idiom, infinitive, metaphor, semiotics, simile

antecedent

adjective

Definition of antecedent

:prior

antecedent events

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antecedently

adverb

See antecedent defined for English-language learners

Examples of antecedent in a Sentence

I'd like to follow up on an antecedent question from another reporter.

Origin and Etymology of antecedent

see ¹antecedent

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

antecedent Synonyms

Synonyms

previous, anterior, foregoing, former, precedent, preceding, prior

Antonyms

after, ensuing, following, later, posterior, subsequent, succeeding

Related Words

advance, early, premature; earliest, first, inaugural, initial, maiden, original, pioneer; preexisting; introductory, preliminary; erstwhile, whilom

Near Antonyms

advanced, late; closing, concluding, final, last, latest, latter, terminal, ultimate

Synonym Discussion of antecedent

preceding, antecedent, foregoing, previous, prior, former, anterior mean being before. preceding usually implies being immediately before in time or in place.

- the preceding sentence

antecedent applies to order in time and may suggest a causal relation.

- conditions antecedent to the revolution

foregoing applies chiefly to statements.

- the foregoing remarks

previous and prior imply existing or occurring earlier, but prior often adds an implication of greater importance.

- a child from a previous marriage
- a prior obligation

former implies always a definite comparison or contrast with something that is latter.

- the former name of the company

anterior applies to position before or ahead of usually in space, sometimes in time or order.

- the anterior lobe of the brain

ANTECEDENT Defined for English Language Learners

antecedent

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noun

Definition of antecedent for English Language Learners

grammar : a word or phrase that is represented by another word (such as a pronoun)
: something that came before something else and may have influenced or caused it
antecedents : the people in a family who lived in past times