as in forerunner
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 predecessor
The release of the Nintendo Switch 2 comes eight years after its predecessor Nintendo Switch, a hybrid console that allows users to play it on the go as a mobile device or plug it into a TV for at-home play.
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Max Zahn, ABC News, 4 June 2025
Segura’s predecessor, Dana Tomarken, was abruptly fired in April of 2018 after 25 years with the Academy, resulting in her filing a wrongful-termination lawsuit against the Academy.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 27 May 2025
Read more: The Meaning of Germany’s Dramatic Rearmament The shift marks a departure from Merz’s predecessor, Olaf Scholz, who had resisted sending long-range weaponry to Ukraine, citing fears of Russian escalation.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 27 May 2025
Trump has repeatedly sought to blame his predecessor for inflation.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for predecessor
Max Zahn, ABC News, 4 June 2025
Segura’s predecessor, Dana Tomarken, was abruptly fired in April of 2018 after 25 years with the Academy, resulting in her filing a wrongful-termination lawsuit against the Academy.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 27 May 2025
Read more: The Meaning of Germany’s Dramatic Rearmament The shift marks a departure from Merz’s predecessor, Olaf Scholz, who had resisted sending long-range weaponry to Ukraine, citing fears of Russian escalation.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 27 May 2025
Trump has repeatedly sought to blame his predecessor for inflation.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for predecessor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for predecessor
Noun
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The forerunner of today’s sleek MacBook laptops was the PowerBook.—
Cynthia Littleton,
Variety,
11 June 2025
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Frederick Ashton’s for the Sadler’s Wells Ballet (the forerunner of the Royal Ballet) in 1952, with a resplendent Margot Fonteyn in the title role, put the ballet back into the mainstream repertory, though it wasn’t performed by the Royal from the mid-1960s to 2004.—
Roslyn Sulcas,
New York Times,
30 May 2025
Noun
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Now is the time to stand up for every American’s First Amendment right to tell their story, to dissent from the government’s world view, to celebrate the resilience and fortitude of ancestors who fought for their rights and their culture in this country.—
John Leguizamo,
New York Daily News,
6 June 2025
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Names carry the legacy of our ancestors, the history of our culture, and the desires of our parents.—
Annabelle Canela,
Parents,
5 June 2025
Noun
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By World Health Organization (WHO) standards established in 1994, this designates a person as having osteopenia — often a precursor to osteoporosis.—
Jia H. Jung,
Mercury News,
4 June 2025
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Leverton said trends like western, cottagecore, Americana and conservative styles of dress, in general, were precursors to where things were the U.S. presidential election was heading last year.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Predecessor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/predecessor. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
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