noun
1A person or thing that comes before another of the same kind; a forerunner.
‘a three-stringed precursor of the violin’
- ‘In so doing, Coram created London's first art gallery, a precursor of the Royal Academy.’
- ‘The pre-meal selection of chutneys is a precursor of the sharp flavours to come.’
- ‘What appeals to me is that it's a precursor of Pinter and a follower of Coward.’
- ‘Bond's preoccupation with brand names made him a precursor of the consumer society.’
- ‘It therefore formed a precursor of the Renaissance court.’
- ‘This monologue dates from 1977, and it is perhaps most interesting as a precursor of the author's later and better work.’
- ‘In the Netherlands, shared care models have acted as a precursor of the recently introduced concept of disease management.’
- ‘This is a precursor of the modern Spaghetti alla carbonara, one of the most popular pasta dishes, but of obscure origin.’
- ‘The clicking noise is normally a precursor of a lost/broken rivet and should be regarded as a warning sign.’
- ‘This took place in 1922, and was a precursor of the show trials of the following decades.’
- ‘On the one hand, alchemy is regarded as a precursor of the modern science of chemistry.’
- ‘Companies can be guided by key lead indicators which have historically been a precursor of a change in activity levels for their business sector.’
- ‘As the first venture develops it is the precursor of what may become a new niche in the travel industry and in holiday home real estate.’
- ‘It was an obvious precursor of today's great intermediary, money, in such forms as bank credit.’
- ‘Hubris has most clearly set in and hubris is the precursor of the end.’
forerunner, predecessor, forefather, father, parent, antecedent, ancestor, forebear, progenitor
View synonyms- 1.1A substance from which another is formed, especially by metabolic reaction.
‘pepsinogen is the inactive precursor of pepsin’
- ‘Plant substances make precursors of human sex hormones that can be converted in the body.’
- ‘The plaque is an accumulation of amino acid protein precursors called A-Beta.’
- ‘It also contains various plant steroids that serve as hormone precursors as well as vitamin B 12 and carotene.’
- ‘Meat contains cholesterol, a precursor to many hormones, including testosterone.’
- ‘It is also the precursor for sex hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone.’
Origin
Late Middle English from Latin praecursor, from praecurs- ‘preceded’, from praecurrere, from prae ‘beforehand’ + currere ‘to run’.