as in previous
going before another in time or order
behavior that may be explained by a precedent event in her troubled life
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Recent Examples of precedent
That’s because precedent changes in small but important ways all the time.
—
Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2025
This adaptation demands re-conceiving large chunks of plot from the ground-up while retaining Liu’s themes, not to mention visualizing concepts with less precedent onscreen than the fantasy tropes Martin deployed and subverted.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Mar. 2024
Many legal scholars question the basis for declaring an ever-wider array of cases to be super-precedent as a way to protect favored rulings.
—Jonathan Turley, WSJ, 15 Oct. 2020
Britain has no clear privacy law, so precedent matters.
—The Economist, 3 Oct. 2019
See All Example Sentences for precedent
Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2025
This adaptation demands re-conceiving large chunks of plot from the ground-up while retaining Liu’s themes, not to mention visualizing concepts with less precedent onscreen than the fantasy tropes Martin deployed and subverted.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Mar. 2024
Many legal scholars question the basis for declaring an ever-wider array of cases to be super-precedent as a way to protect favored rulings.
—Jonathan Turley, WSJ, 15 Oct. 2020
Britain has no clear privacy law, so precedent matters.
—The Economist, 3 Oct. 2019
See All Example Sentences for precedent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for precedent
previous
Adjective
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The Atlanta-area native also went just 8-for-14 from the foul line in his latest homecoming after making 91% of his foul shots over his previous nine games.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
31 Mar. 2026
-
That could benefit a candidate like McAdams, who built a broad base during his previous campaign.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Precedent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/precedent. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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