| a. | 1. | Going before in time; prior; anterior; preceding; |
| 2. | Presumptive; | |
| n. | 1. | That which goes before in time; that which precedes. |
| 2. | One who precedes or goes in front. | |
| 3. | The earlier events of one's life; previous principles, conduct, course, history. | |
| 4. | (Gram.) The noun to which a relative refers; | |
| 5. | (Logic) The first or conditional part of a hypothetical proposition; as, If the earth is fixed, the sun must move. | |
| 6. | (Math.) The first of the two terms of a ratio; the first or third of the four terms of a proportion. In the ratio |
| Noun | 1. | antecedent - someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent) |
| 2. | antecedent - a preceding occurrence or cause or event | |
| 3. | antecedent - anything that precedes something similar in time; "phrenology was an antecedent of modern neuroscience" Synonyms: forerunner | |
| 4. | antecedent - the referent of an anaphor; a phrase or clause that is referred to by an anaphoric pronoun | |
| Adj. | 1. | antecedent - preceding in time or order Synonyms: preceding Antonyms: subsequent - following in time or order; "subsequent developments" |
ANTECEDENT. Something that goes before. In the construction of laws, agreements, and the like, reference is always to be made to the last antecedent; ad proximun antecedens fiat relatio. But not only the antecedents but the subsequent clauses of the instrument must be considered: Ex antecedentibus et consequentibus fit optima interpretatio.
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