someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent)
a preceding occurrence or cause or event
anything that precedes something similar in time
"phrenology was an antecedent of modern neuroscience"
the referent of an anaphor; a phrase or clause that is referred to by an anaphoric pronoun
Any thing that precedes another thing, especially the cause of the second thing.
preceding in time or order
Earlier, either in time or in order.
The word "antecedent" comes from the Latin antecēdēns, meaning "going before." It entered English through Old French and originally described something that precedes or comes prior to another.