antecedent

1 of 2

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 "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

antecedent

2 of 2

adjective

: prior

antecedent events

antecedently adverb

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.).

Synonyms

Noun

• causality
• causation
• cause
• occasion
• reason

Adjective

• anterior
• foregoing
• former
• precedent
• preceding
• previous
• prior

Choose the Right Synonym for 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

Examples of antecedent in a Sentence

Noun

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

what are the antecedents of the American Revolutionary War?

Adjective

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

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The most obvious antecedent to this fandom is the one for the Smiths, the maudlin but melodious Manchester band that broke up in 1987 but continues to enjoy a passionate following among Mexican Americans today. —Eric Ducker, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2023

And do LLMs really represent, as some people claim, the antecedent of alien form of superintelligence? —WIRED, 11 Aug. 2023

Others point to the many antecedents of hip-hop, from Muhammed Ali’s freestyle rhymes to the Last Poets, the late-Sixties collective of poets and musicians who also helped pioneer what could be called rapping. —David Browne, Rolling Stone, 11 Aug. 2023

Inevitably, there is a suicide under a train, though it is motivated by something other than an adulterer’s despair—another sign, perhaps, of the author’s own ambitions, a desire to free herself from literary antecedents and to find an autonomous world of plot and theme. —Thomas Mallon, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2023

Mainstream fame arrived in 2004, when the Carl Alan Award recipient stepped into the role as head judge on BBC’s hit series Strictly Come Dancing for 12 years, the British antecedent of the ballroom reality show in which famous contestants are paired with professional dancers. —Vulture, 24 Apr. 2023

Her most obvious antecedents were probably the nervy, forever restless Bette Davis and her Gallic descendant, Jeanne Moreau. —Ben Brantley, New York Times, 15 June 2023

Maybe the most direct design antecedent here is the romantic sets that the landscape painter Josef Hoffmann designed for the first performances of Wagner’s Ring cycle in 1876. —Curbed, 25 Apr. 2023

The more telling antecedent would be Universal’s most recent animated effort Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, which came out just before Christmas and quietly hung in the top ten for months en route to racking up a surprisingly robust $479.8 million worldwide. —Vulture, 18 Apr. 2023

Adjective

Consider, first, that in an artificial system that rises to the level of consciousness, such as future iterations of GPT or LaMDA might become, this consciousness could not be the result of any slow evolutionary process with antecedent stages of mere sensory perception. —Justin E. H. Smith, WIRED, 7 Mar. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun and Adjective

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

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined above

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