1
as in forerunner
one that announces or indicates the later arrival of another
18th-century lyric poets like Robert Burns were precursors of the Romantics
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2
as in ancestor
something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed
a precursor of the modern eggplant
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of precursor
The story revealed Lively had filed a precursor complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department.
—
Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
Trump said that Xi committed to cracking down on the production of fentanyl precursors as well in exchange for lowering tariffs on China.
—David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025
What To Know Since the end of September, Iran has reportedly received from China 2000 tons of sodium perchlorate, a missile fuel precursor, enough for roughly 500 ballistic missiles, CNN reported on Wednesday.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
China also agreed to pause its sweeping rare-earth controls for a year while taking steps to stem the flow of precursor chemicals used in fentanyl production.
—Anniek Bao, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for precursor
Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
Trump said that Xi committed to cracking down on the production of fentanyl precursors as well in exchange for lowering tariffs on China.
—David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025
What To Know Since the end of September, Iran has reportedly received from China 2000 tons of sodium perchlorate, a missile fuel precursor, enough for roughly 500 ballistic missiles, CNN reported on Wednesday.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
China also agreed to pause its sweeping rare-earth controls for a year while taking steps to stem the flow of precursor chemicals used in fentanyl production.
—Anniek Bao, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for precursor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for precursor
Noun
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Perfected by forerunners such as Fiona Apple and Alanis Morissette, this fall has already seen two music stars gift us with lay-it-all-out-there lyrics.—
Dan Heching,
CNN Money,
28 Oct. 2025
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The Park cinema launched under the ownership of Cineplex Odeon Cinemas, a forerunner of Cineplex and today an operator of multiplexes and out of home destinations.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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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
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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
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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
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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
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Evidence is limited on how food or diet affects GERD symptoms, and available research is conflicting.—
Merve Ceylan,
Health,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Parents should notify a health care provider of any symptoms.—
Nicole Nixon,
Sacbee.com,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The indie feature heralds from Benacus Entertainment and RNF Productions.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
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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
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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
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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
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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
“Precursor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/precursor. Accessed 20 Nov. 2025.
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