Meaning & use
precede
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Meanings
verbtransitiveformal
To happen or exist earlier than something else.
Grammar: It always takes an object: the storm preceded the flood.
Patterns
- something precedes something
A brief tremor often precedes a larger earthquake.
The appetizer precedes the main course.
Years of drought preceded the famine.
verbtransitiveformal
To walk or be placed in front of someone or something.
Grammar: Often passive or with a leader as object: a band preceded the mayor.
Patterns
- precede someone into a place
A police escort preceded the president's car.
The guide preceded us up the narrow stairs.
Two flower girls preceded the bride down the aisle.
verbtransitiveformal
To come before in importance or rank.
Grammar: Used about status or priority: safety precedes speed.
In our hospital, patient safety precedes convenience.
A prince precedes a duke in this ranking.
In the list of duties, cleaning the lab precedes recording the results.
Word forms
| third person singular | precedes |
|---|---|
| past tense | preceded |
| past participle | preceded |
| -ing form | preceding |
Common combinations
- immediately precede
- The warning light immediately preceded the engine failure.
- directly precede
- A short silence directly preceded the applause.
- precede the event
- A long rehearsal preceded the event.
- the preceding chapter
- As the preceding chapter explained, costs rose sharply.
- be preceded by
- The speech was preceded by a film.
Synonyms and how they differ
- come before
- Come before is the plain everyday phrase, while precede sounds more formal and written.
- antedate
- Antedate is rare and means to be older than something in history, not to come right before it.
- lead
- Lead means to be at the front of a group and does not suggest earlier time the way precede does.
- herald
- Herald suggests announcing something that is coming, while precede only states the order.
Opposites
Word family
- preceding adjective
- coming just before in time or order
- precedence noun
- the right to come first because of importance
- precedent noun
- an earlier case used as a guide
- unprecedented adjective
- never having happened before
Commonly confused: precede or proceed?
precede vs proceed
Proceed means to go on or continue, while precede means to come before. Remember the pre in precede, as in prefix.
Practice
A warm-up exercise should always ___ a hard workout.
Choose one answer.
Precede means to come before in time, which matches the order described. Proceed is a common mix-up but means to continue.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “precede”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.