Definitions for predecessor
ˈprɛd əˌsɛs ər; esp. Brit. ˈpri də-pre·de·ces·sor

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. predecessornoun

   one who precedes you in time (as in holding a position or office)

2. harbinger, forerunner, predecessor, herald, precursornoun

   something that precedes and indicates the approach of something or someone

WiktionaryRate this definition:3.5 / 2 votes

1. predecessornoun

   One who precedes; one who has preceded another in any state, position, office, etc.; one whom another follows or comes after, in any office or position.

2. predecessornoun

   A model or type of machinery or device which precedes the current one. Usually used to describe an earlier, outdated model.

   The steam engine was the predecessor of diesel and electric locomotives.

3. predecessornoun

   A vertex having a directed path to another vertex

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Predecessornoun

   Etymology: predecesseur, Fr. præ and decedo, Lat.

   1. One that was in any state or place before another.

   In these pastoral pastimes, a great many days were spent to follow their flying predecessors. Philip Sidney.

   There is cause, why we should be slow and unwilling to change, without very urgent necessity, the ancient ordinances, rites and long approved customs of our venerable predecessors. Richard Hooker.

   If I seem partial to my predecessor in the laurel, the friends of antiquity are not few. Dryden.

   The present pope, who is well acquainted with the secret history, and the weakness of his predecessor, seems resolved to bring the project to its perfection. Addison.

   The more beauteous Cloe sat to thee,
   Good Howard, emulous of Apelles’ art;
   But happy thou from Cupid’s arrow free,
   And flames that pierc’d thy predecessor ’s heart. Matthew Prior.

   2. Ancestors.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Predecessornoun

   one who precedes; one who has preceded another in any state, position, office, etc.; one whom another follows or comes after, in any office or position

2. Etymology: [L. praedecessor; prae before + decessor one who withdraws from the province he has governed, a retiring officer (with reference to his successor), a predecessor, fr. decedere: cf. F. prdcesseur. See Decease.]

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Predecessor

   prē-dē-ses′or, n. one who has been before another in any office.—v.t. Predecess′ (rare), to precede.—adj. Predeces′sive. [L. præ, before, decessor, a retiring officer, decedĕre, decessum, to withdraw—de, away, cedĕre.]

Matched Categories

1. • Indication
   • Precursor

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'predecessor' in Nouns Frequency: #2171

Anagrams for predecessor »

1. reprocessed

How to pronounce predecessor?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say predecessor in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of predecessor in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of predecessor in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Examples of predecessor in a Sentence

1. John Podesta:

   Clinton agrees with her predecessor that his emails, like hers, are being inappropriately subjected to over-classification.

2. Trevor Noah:

   Trevor Noah later provided additional insight into Trevor Noah predecessor's state of mind, relating the following exchange with Jon Stewart when Jon Stewart signed off :.

3. Hugo Chavez:

   Heres what you need to know aboutMaduro The late Hugo Chavez wasMaduros mentor and predecessor. Maduro was hand-picked by Hugo Chavez to take over the government. He successfully won his first election, defeatingHenrique Capriles albeit narrowly after Chavezs death from cancer in March 2013. In the 1990s, Maduroturned to theRevolutionary Bolivarian Movement-200( MBR-200), a social movement led by Hugo Chavez. During his time with the group, Maduro pushed for the release of Hugo Chavez who was jailed for attempting a coup. Clearly, Maduro earned respect for his dedication : Hugo Chavez later named himforeign minister. [ Maduro is ] a complete revolutionary, a man of great experience despite his youth, with great dedication and capacity for work, for leading, for handling the most difficult situations.

4. David Capie:

   There's a heightened degree of sensitivity around the relationship right now, on a range of issues with China this government has signalled it's taking a different stance to its predecessor, so I think people are waiting to see if and how Beijing responds.

5. Aaron Friedberg:

   I think they worry that the new administration could be tougher and/or less predictable than its predecessor. At the same time, they do continue to talk about Trump as a deal maker, Trump as a pragmatist, they see him as more potentially more flexible, less ideological and therefore someone with whom they can make a deal.

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