forerunner

1 one that announces or indicates the later arrival of another the return of the swallows is traditionally regarded as a forerunner of spring Synonyms angel, foregoer, harbinger, herald, outrider, precursor Related Words foreboder, foreshadower, foretaste, forewarning; advertiser, announcer, blazoner, crier, proclaimer; courier, messenger, runner; augury, auspice, boding, foreboding, foreshadowing, omen, portent, prefiguring, presage; mark, sign, symptom; bellwether

2 something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed enjoyed the demonstration of the simple hand loom that was the forerunner of today's computer-controlled looms Synonyms antecedent, archetype, daddy, foregoer, ancestor, granddaddy (also grandaddy), precursor, predecessor, prototypeRelated Words model, original; originator, sire; father, motherNear Antonyms by-product, derivative, offshoot, outgrowth, spin-off; daughter, sonAntonyms descendant (also descendent)