as in preceding
to go or come before in time
gunpowder predated the invention of the gun by several centuries
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Recent Examples of predating
They are estimated to have evolved around 500 million years ago, predating the age of dinosaurs by roughly 265 million years.
—
Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 3 Mar. 2026
The book features over 70 historical workwear garments—some predating the invention of modern blue jeans—and more than 350 photographs spanning cabinet cards, cartes de visite, real photo postcards, tintypes, and stereoscopic photo cards.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 18 Feb. 2026
Just as startling to contemporaneous readers was a description, predating Darwin by almost a decade, of the omnipresence of violence in nature.
—Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
The Sonoran desert has a long tradition of moonshine agave spirit production predating Prohibition.
—Von Diaz, Bon Appetit Magazine, 11 Dec. 2025
Section 5200 has been on the books for many decades, predating the state’s current involuntary treatment law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, which the Legislature enacted in 1967.
—Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Dec. 2025
Pterosaurs dominated the skies more than 220 million years ago, predating the appearance of early bird relatives like Archaeopteryx.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 27 Nov. 2025
Finally, Stone Hill Winery, was established way back in 1847, predating Napa.
—Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Travel + Leisure, 25 Oct. 2025
There has been a rise in anti-Jewish hostility in Britain, predating the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza that started two years ago, according to community groups and the people suffering the firsthand effects in the United Kingdom.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC news, 5 Oct. 2025
Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 3 Mar. 2026
The book features over 70 historical workwear garments—some predating the invention of modern blue jeans—and more than 350 photographs spanning cabinet cards, cartes de visite, real photo postcards, tintypes, and stereoscopic photo cards.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 18 Feb. 2026
Just as startling to contemporaneous readers was a description, predating Darwin by almost a decade, of the omnipresence of violence in nature.
—Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
The Sonoran desert has a long tradition of moonshine agave spirit production predating Prohibition.
—Von Diaz, Bon Appetit Magazine, 11 Dec. 2025
Section 5200 has been on the books for many decades, predating the state’s current involuntary treatment law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, which the Legislature enacted in 1967.
—Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Dec. 2025
Pterosaurs dominated the skies more than 220 million years ago, predating the appearance of early bird relatives like Archaeopteryx.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 27 Nov. 2025
Finally, Stone Hill Winery, was established way back in 1847, predating Napa.
—Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Travel + Leisure, 25 Oct. 2025
There has been a rise in anti-Jewish hostility in Britain, predating the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza that started two years ago, according to community groups and the people suffering the firsthand effects in the United Kingdom.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC news, 5 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for predating
preceding
Verb
-
Over the preceding years, Bennett had come to question the medical reasoning behind her three prior C-sections.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
16 Mar. 2026
-
The murders magnified the terror and sorrow emanating from thousands of anti-Asian attacks arising in the months preceding.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Predating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/predating. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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