1
as in precursors
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 ancestors
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 forerunners
Even the Hammurabi Code, a set of laws created by the sixth Babylonian king in approximately 1760 bce, established forerunners of today’s interest rate and minimum wage laws.
—
Chris Roush, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Apr. 2026
The Norwegian ended his season before the Olympics to further recover from a shoulder injury, but attended the finals as one of the forerunners, who test a course shortly before a race starts.
—ABC News, 22 Mar. 2026
These were the forerunners of today’s robots.
—Munis Raza, Interesting Engineering, 9 Mar. 2026
And these projects may just be the forerunners.
—Andy Sheehan, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
With little support for the WHO among Republicans — who control both the House and the Senate — there has been no push from Congress to hold the country to the provision set out by their forerunners.
—Helen Branswell, STAT, 21 Jan. 2026
Like these forerunners, the pleasures of Knight’s A Thousand Blows, which premiered all six episodes of its second season on Hulu Friday, lies in looking back on that thin sliver of time, about 15 years ago, when anachronistic old-timey crime was in vogue.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2026
The primacy of a central meeting space can be traced to the Greek Empire with the agora, among other forerunners.
—Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 19 Dec. 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
Chris Roush, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Apr. 2026
The Norwegian ended his season before the Olympics to further recover from a shoulder injury, but attended the finals as one of the forerunners, who test a course shortly before a race starts.
—ABC News, 22 Mar. 2026
These were the forerunners of today’s robots.
—Munis Raza, Interesting Engineering, 9 Mar. 2026
And these projects may just be the forerunners.
—Andy Sheehan, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
With little support for the WHO among Republicans — who control both the House and the Senate — there has been no push from Congress to hold the country to the provision set out by their forerunners.
—Helen Branswell, STAT, 21 Jan. 2026
Like these forerunners, the pleasures of Knight’s A Thousand Blows, which premiered all six episodes of its second season on Hulu Friday, lies in looking back on that thin sliver of time, about 15 years ago, when anachronistic old-timey crime was in vogue.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2026
The primacy of a central meeting space can be traced to the Greek Empire with the agora, among other forerunners.
—Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 19 Dec. 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forerunners
Noun
-
Earth-impacting shrapnel from those primordial upheavals may have helped seed our planet with the precursors for life, delivering water and organic compounds from the dark, icy depths of the outer solar system.—
Lee Billings,
Scientific American,
18 June 2026
-
Tort claims are necessary precursors to potential lawsuits against the government.—
Nicole Blanchard,
Idaho Statesman,
16 June 2026
Noun
-
Like their ancient ancestors, visitors standing at the center of the stone circle on Sunday will be able to watch the sun rise above the Heel Stone to the northeast — weather depending, of course.—
Elmira Aliieva,
NBC news,
18 June 2026
-
How did some of our oldest ancestors make the first step onto land some 350 million years ago?—
Sarah Durn,
Popular Science,
18 June 2026
Noun
-
If canaries in coal mines were harbingers of safe conditions, surely piping plovers at Waukegan Beach mean the city is overcoming its polluted past.—
Charles Selle,
Chicago Tribune,
4 May 2026
-
In recent years, there have also been reports of vandalism and attacks on robotaxis and delivery robots, which some see as harbingers of a high-tech future not everyone asked for.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Many of these coupists capitalized on public discontent over deteriorating economies and security conditions to overthrow their predecessors.—
Kaitlyn Rabe,
The Conversation,
16 June 2026
-
Trump’s predecessors were hardly saints.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
16 June 2026
Noun
-
The heralds operate like independent contractors, with their own caseloads.—
Helen Lewis,
The Atlantic,
9 June 2026
-
The reason is that the 1996 Ferrari 550 Maranello’s arrival was one of the heralds of the Ferrari of today, the one building cars with both world-beating performance and everyday usability.—
Will Sabel Courtney,
Robb Report,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
But this regime is not going to be toppled by appeals to their humanity, to the angels of their better nature.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
17 June 2026
-
Orlando’s greatest tribute to the 49 angels lost on that horrible night will be the love, kindness and compassion that define the city a decade later.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
11 June 2026
Noun
-
His deputies and outriders are not quite so deft.—
Sam Knight,
New Yorker,
21 Sep. 2025
-
Churchill Downs outriders, jockey agents, jockeys Florent Geroux and Julian Leperoux, as well as members of Lukas' barn staff also sat in the crowd.—
Stephanie Kuzydym,
Louisville Courier Journal,
19 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
The brand continues to grow, opening a Lisbon hotel in 2022, and its popularity shows no signs of waning.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 June 2026
-
Salah turned 34 today, with several fans bringing signs to the stadium in his honor.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Forerunners.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forerunners. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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