Standard Lemma guide

precede

noun · verb · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /pɹɪˈsiːd/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /pɹiːˈsiːd/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /pɹəˈsiːd/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /pɹɪˈsid/
  • General-American: /pɹiˈsid/
  • General-American: /pɹəˈsid/
  • homophone: proceed (only with the pronunciation /pɹəˈsiːd/)
  • rhymes with -iːd
  • CMU ARPABET: P R IH0 S IY1 D Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Brief editorial preface (usually to an article or essay).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To go before, go in front of.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • Cultural genocide precedes physical genocide.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To cause to be preceded; to preface; to introduce.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To have higher rank than (someone or something else).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

furnish with a preface or introduction

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • She always precedes her lectures with a joke
  • He prefaced his lecture with a critical remark about the institution

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: preface, premise, introduce

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: state, say, tell

Narrower terms: preamble, prologize, prologuize, prologise

6

verb

Meaning 6

move ahead (of others) in time or space

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: lead

Antonyms: follow

Broader terms: travel, go, move, locomote

Narrower terms: lead, head

7

verb

Meaning 7

be the predecessor of

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Bill preceded John in the long line of Susan's husbands

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: come before

Antonyms: succeed

8

verb

Meaning 8

come before

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Most English adjectives precede the noun they modify

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: predate

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: lie

9

verb

Meaning 9

be earlier in time; go back further

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Stone tools precede bronze tools

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: predate, forego, forgo, antecede, antedate

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle French précéder, from Latin praecēdō, from prae- + cēdō.

Across languages

Translations

52 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: سَبَقَ (sabaqa) — go before, go in front of
  • Arabic: سَلَفَ (salafa) — go before, go in front of
  • Arabic: قَدَمَ (qadama) — go before, go in front of
  • Arabic: تَقَدَّمَ (taqaddama) — go before, go in front of
  • Bulgarian: предшествам (predšestvam) — go before, go in front of
  • Catalan: precedir — go before, go in front of
  • Czech: předcházet — go before, go in front of
  • Dutch: voorafgaan — go before, go in front of
  • Dutch: laten voorbijgaan — go before, go in front of
  • Dutch: passen — go before, go in front of
  • Esperanto: antaŭiri — go before, go in front of
  • Finnish: kulkea edellä — go before, go in front of
  • Finnish: edeltää — go before, go in front of
  • French: précéder — go before, go in front of
  • German: vorangehen — go before, go in front of
  • German: vorausgehen — go before, go in front of
  • German: kommen vor — go before, go in front of
  • Greek: προηγούμαι (proïgoúmai) — go before, go in front of
  • Ancient Greek: ἡγέομαι (hēgéomai) — go before, go in front of
  • Hebrew: קָדַם (kadám) — go before, go in front of
  • Indonesian: memasrahkan — go before, go in front of
  • Italian: precedere — go before, go in front of
  • Japanese: 先んずる (sakinzuru) — go before, go in front of
  • Latin: praecēdō — go before, go in front of
  • Latin: praeveniō — go before, go in front of
  • Occitan: precedir — go before, go in front of
  • Occitan: davantejar — go before, go in front of
  • Persian: پیشرفتن (pišraftan) — go before, go in front of
  • Polish: poprzedzać — go before, go in front of
  • Polish: poprzedzić — go before, go in front of
  • Portuguese: preceder — go before, go in front of
  • Portuguese: anteceder — go before, go in front of
  • Romanian: preceda — go before, go in front of
  • Russian: предше́ствовать (predšéstvovatʹ) — go before, go in front of
  • Serbo-Croatian: prethoditi — go before, go in front of
  • Serbo-Croatian: претходити — go before, go in front of
  • Spanish: preceder — go before, go in front of
  • Spanish: antepasar (desus.) — go before, go in front of
  • Swahili: kutangulia — go before, go in front of
  • Turkish: önce gelmek — go before, go in front of
  • Turkish: önce gitmek — go before, go in front of
  • Ukrainian: передува́ти (pereduváty) — go before, go in front of
  • Bulgarian: превъзхождам (prevǎzhoždam) — have higher rank than
  • Finnish: ylittää tärkeydessä — have higher rank than
  • Finnish: olla tärkeämpi — have higher rank than
  • Finnish: olla ylempiarvoinen — have higher rank than
  • French: précéder — have higher rank than
  • German: rangieren vor — have higher rank than
  • Hungarian: megelőz — have higher rank than
  • Portuguese: preceder — have higher rank than
  • Romanian: preceda — have higher rank than
  • Russian: превосходи́ть (prevosxodítʹ) — have higher rank than