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
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
Benjamin Nathans
september 24, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forerunners
Noun
-
By the late 2010s, the precursors of ChatGPT, Gemini, and DALL-E were spluttering to life, making real the future that the Army had envisioned in World War II.—
Angus Fletcher,
Big Think,
29 Sep. 2025
-
And the precursors for that reality may already be in motion, Metzger noted.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Obviously, that spoke to me, because my ancestors were slaves.—
Kyle Denis,
Billboard,
15 Oct. 2025
-
In a personal tie, her paternal ancestors were the owners of the woollen manufacturer and merchant, William Lupton & Co, which was based in Leeds.—
Stephanie Petit,
PEOPLE,
14 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
These could be harbingers of bigger things to come.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
13 Oct. 2025
-
One of the most worrisome harbingers of future affordability is that Florida added more than 700,000 units with gross rents higher than $1,200 monthly between 2012 and 2022.—
Jeffrey Steele,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The failure was particularly notable because the device broke at the same structural weak point that plagued its two predecessors.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
16 Oct. 2025
-
Like its predecessors, the Varg SM sports a sleek, motocross-style look.—
Bryan Hood,
Robb Report,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The indie feature heralds from Benacus Entertainment and RNF Productions.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Thy Kingdom Come’s entrance heralds 10 total appearances for the album’s tracks on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.—
Trevor Anderson,
Billboard,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Five turbine prototypes were delivered to the BBF Group for testing at different sites to assess how location and height affect performance.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Oct. 2025
-
Each new Songmont model undergoes wear testing; the brand fine-tunes and iterates its prototypes based on customer feedback.—
Footwear News,
Footwear News,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In 2017, the angels (who requested anonymity) attracted other donors, which enabled the school to finally return employees to normal salaries, cover tuition for needy students, acquire improvements, such as technology for students and teachers, and offer new courses, including art and music.—
Jan Goldsmith,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Oct. 2025
-
The first six angels named to the runway are Adriana Lima, Alex Consani, Anok Yai, Joan Smalls, Lily Aldridge, and Yumi Nu.—
DeMicia Inman,
VIBE.com,
9 Oct. 2025
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
Cite this Entry
“Forerunners.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forerunners. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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