antecedent.

1. Preceding in time or order, or a prior event or condition considered as a precursor.

2. The word or phrase to which a pronoun or other referring expression relates.

3. The proposition or clause introduced as the condition in an if-then statement.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• antecedent condition
• antecedent event

On the page

The study recorded antecedent conditions.

An antecedent event shaped the dispute.

They distinguished antecedents from proven causes.

Usage notes

Primary category: academic. Forms: Normally non-gradable adjective. Noun antecedent; antecedents. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.