1
as in precursor
one that announces or indicates the later arrival of another
the return of the swallows is traditionally regarded as a forerunner of spring
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in ancestor
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 & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of forerunner
Coughlin is not an exact forerunner for today’s algorithm pundits—no historical analogy is that perfect.
—
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2025
Compared to their forerunners in the tsarist era, with their party congresses held abroad, their executive committees, and their active recruitment in imperial Russia’s universities, Soviet dissidents remained a comparatively small and informal conglomeration of activists.
—Benjamin Nathans
september 24, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
The reactor is the forerunner to the Aalo Pod, a 50-megawatt modular power plant designed specifically for data centers.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2025
German missile designers launched their V2 rocket for the first time—the forerunner of the ICBM that would blitz the United Kingdom—and Berlin’s Luftwaffe dominated European skies.
—Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forerunner
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2025
Compared to their forerunners in the tsarist era, with their party congresses held abroad, their executive committees, and their active recruitment in imperial Russia’s universities, Soviet dissidents remained a comparatively small and informal conglomeration of activists.
—Benjamin Nathans
september 24, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
The reactor is the forerunner to the Aalo Pod, a 50-megawatt modular power plant designed specifically for data centers.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2025
German missile designers launched their V2 rocket for the first time—the forerunner of the ICBM that would blitz the United Kingdom—and Berlin’s Luftwaffe dominated European skies.
—Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forerunner
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forerunner
Noun
-
Nya Lödöse was an important precursor to modern-day Gothenburg, located in the city’s eastern part between 1473 and 1624.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Bogle introduced the first index fund for everyday investors, a precursor to the Vanguard 500.—
Mark Dent,
HubSpot,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
His tío was a babalao (a Santería priest) who could conjure a spirit known as an orixá that could then take the form of its targets’ ancestors.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
10 Nov. 2025
-
At Rokeby, museum interpreters explain how the Robinson's ancestors had become wealthy in part due to the slave trade, but were abolitionists in later generations.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The tariffs case is thus a harbinger of the far-reaching executive-power problem of this era.—
Jeannie Suk Gersen,
New Yorker,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The surfers, initially viewed by some as welcome curiosities and by others as nuisances, became harbingers of economic salvation through tourism, now the dominant industry, though still a relatively new one.—
David Amsden,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Previous Chinese efforts in deep-sea mining were primarily limited to theoretical studies and lab-scale prototypes.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
7 Nov. 2025
-
The prototype — designed, like the Miura, by Gandini — first appeared at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show, an impossible doorstop of a spaceship with a roofline that barely came up to the waists of the go-go-boot-wearing models who posed alongside it.—
Will Sabel Courtney,
Robb Report,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The indie feature heralds from Benacus Entertainment and RNF Productions.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Marie, Andre, Jordan, and Emma put down the supe uprising, but then psychotic fascist Homelander showed up to condemn them as villains and herald the murderous Cate and Sam as top students and potential recruits for the thoroughly corrupt Seven.—
EW Staff,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Trade discussions dominated those meetings, but there were signs of growing tensions over Beijing’s surging conventional and nuclear arsenal.—
Tamara Qiblawi,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
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However, unlike last season, there was no sign to those within the Capitals that their captain was feeling the pressure of scoring another historic goal.—
Sean Gentille,
New York Times,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
For it is He who created the angels, and thus Memnoch, a fallen angel, who God basically sees as the loyal opposition.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Nov. 2025
-
The handsewn and carefully backstitched quilts feature colorful images of buffalo heads, turtles, eagles, angels and other patterns that come to Water in her dreams.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Forerunner.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forerunner. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.
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