precursor
UK /pɹɪˈkɜː.sə/ · US /pɹɪˈkɜɹ.səɹ/ noun, adjective
Forms precursors præcursor
- noun That which precurses: a forerunner, predecessor, or indicator of approaching events.
- noun (chemistry) One of the compounds that participates in the chemical reaction that produces another compound.
- adjective (telecommunications, of intersymbol interference) Caused by the following symbol.
Synonyms
antecedent beforemath foremath precedent progenitor forerunner harbinger predecessor herald
Antonyms
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English precursour, from Middle French precurseur or its etymon Latin praecursor (“forerunner”). By surface analysis, precurse + -or.
Webster’s 1913
- noun One who, or that which, precedes an event, and indicates its approach; a forerunner; a harbinger.
Etymology [L. praecursor, fr. praecurrere to run before; prae before + currere to run. See Course.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “precursor”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details