Word Meaning

antecedent definition and meaning

a. Going before in time; prior; anterior; preceding; as, an event antecedent to the Deluge; an antecedent cause.
a. Presumptive; as, an antecedent improbability.
n. That which goes before in time; that which precedes.
n. One who precedes or goes in front.
n. The earlier events of one's life; previous principles, conduct, course, history.
n. The noun to which a relative refers; as, in the sentence "Solomon was the prince who built the temple," prince is the antecedent of who.
n. The first or conditional part of a hypothetical proposition; as, If the earth is fixed, the sun must move.
n. The first of the two propositions which constitute an enthymeme or contracted syllogism; as, Every man is mortal; therefore the king must die.
n. The first of the two terms of a ratio; the first or third of the four terms of a proportion. In the ratio a:b, a is the antecedent, and b the consequent.

Crossword clues for antecedent

- Ancestor
- Going before
- Preceding in time