as in forerunners
something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed
the once-ubiquitous typewriter was the predecessor of today's electronic keyboard
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Recent Examples of predecessors
The striking look, which models wore in tones of white, pink, and violet, was a sweet nod to one of Anderson’s predecessors, John Galliano.
—
Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 28 Jan. 2026
The question is, will the new class of lawmakers finish what their predecessors started?
—Julie Watts, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026
The documents themselves boast his enormous signature, significantly larger on the page than those of his predecessors.
—Bernadette Meyler, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
One of them is executive power, where this Court has obviously been as sympathetic to broad readings of Article II as any of its predecessors.
—Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
Shlesinger’s leading performance has the stuff of a star-making turn, though the film isn’t distinctive enough from its peers and predecessors to match the actor’s obvious onscreen charisma.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 26 Jan. 2026
Compared to his predecessors, Leo XIV is more engaged with the digital world.
—Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 24 Jan. 2026
Beyond that sentiment, max contracts are in play, stylists are at the ready, and years of visual language have been laid down by predecessors like Allen Iverson, Dennis Rodman, and Michael Jordan.
—Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
These heavy elements became the building blocks of the next generation of stars, which were more metal-rich than their predecessors.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 28 Jan. 2026
The question is, will the new class of lawmakers finish what their predecessors started?
—Julie Watts, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026
The documents themselves boast his enormous signature, significantly larger on the page than those of his predecessors.
—Bernadette Meyler, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
One of them is executive power, where this Court has obviously been as sympathetic to broad readings of Article II as any of its predecessors.
—Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
Shlesinger’s leading performance has the stuff of a star-making turn, though the film isn’t distinctive enough from its peers and predecessors to match the actor’s obvious onscreen charisma.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 26 Jan. 2026
Compared to his predecessors, Leo XIV is more engaged with the digital world.
—Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 24 Jan. 2026
Beyond that sentiment, max contracts are in play, stylists are at the ready, and years of visual language have been laid down by predecessors like Allen Iverson, Dennis Rodman, and Michael Jordan.
—Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
These heavy elements became the building blocks of the next generation of stars, which were more metal-rich than their predecessors.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for predecessors
Noun
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Like these forerunners, the pleasures of Knight’s A Thousand Blows, which premiered all six episodes of its second season on Hulu Friday, lies in looking back on that thin sliver of time, about 15 years ago, when anachronistic old-timey crime was in vogue.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
9 Jan. 2026
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The primacy of a central meeting space can be traced to the Greek Empire with the agora, among other forerunners.—
Jeanne Bonner,
CNN Money,
19 Dec. 2025
Noun
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There’s an urge to reconnect with our heritage, and people are undertaking ancestry pilgrimages, combining boots-on-the-ground investigation into family trees and searching for documents in town halls, with discovering the places our ancestors used to call home.—
Alex Ledsom,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Gibson is passionate about introducing fans to underrepresented voices and tipping her cap to the mothers, grandmothers, and other ancestors who inspired us all along the way.—
Karla Walsh,
Southern Living,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Something that this new reality is forcing all of us to contemplate is whether or not any of the Oscar precursors — the award shows that precede the Oscars, and often claim to predict them — still provide any real sense of where the Academy is headed.—
Scott Feinberg,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Jan. 2026
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Polish police released footage of the operation showing dozens of drums and tanks containing the precursors stored in various warehouses, as well as processing labs raided by heavily armed investigators.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Predecessors.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/predecessors. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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