as in priority
the right to one's attention before other things considered less important
his merchandise order takes precedence because we received it first
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Recent Examples of precedence
But the selection priority — proximity of group-stage matches took precedence for teams in the same pot — pushed Argentina and the Netherlands to the front of the line.
—
Sam McDowell February 13, Kansas City Star, 13 Feb. 2026
Under the constitutional clause, federal law takes precedence over any conflicting state or local law, rendering the lower-level law unenforceable.
—Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
In any case, let the genuine desire to learn and understand take precedence over defensiveness whenever possible.
—Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 8 Feb. 2026
Guthrie was set to be in Italy for the opening, but the search for the elder Guthrie, who has not been seen or heard from in almost a week, obviously took precedence.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for precedence
Sam McDowell February 13, Kansas City Star, 13 Feb. 2026
Under the constitutional clause, federal law takes precedence over any conflicting state or local law, rendering the lower-level law unenforceable.
—Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
In any case, let the genuine desire to learn and understand take precedence over defensiveness whenever possible.
—Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 8 Feb. 2026
Guthrie was set to be in Italy for the opening, but the search for the elder Guthrie, who has not been seen or heard from in almost a week, obviously took precedence.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for precedence
Recent Examples of Synonyms for precedence
priority
Noun
-
There’s agreement on subsidizing child care providers All candidates agreed that the state needed to further subsidize child care providers and extend family leave but offered varying answers on how to fund those priorities.—
Lia Russell
Updated February 19,
Sacbee.com,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The development of Cooper Flagg and the rest of the team’s young core will be the priority for the rest of the season, regardless of any game’s final score.—
Mike Curtis,
Dallas Morning News,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Precedence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/precedence. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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