antecedent

Where does the word "antecedent" come from? It comes from Latin antecedere, passing through Latin before entering English (1400s).

Antecedent’s story begins in Latin: antecedere meant “to go before.” To go before, from ante- (before) and cedere (to go). Within Latin, it grew into antecedens by ancient. Going before, present participle of antecedere. It reached English by 1400s as antecedent. Settled as the English word for something that came before or precedes another. Today, antecedent means something that comes before or precedes another thing, especially as a cause or origin.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient antecedere "to go before", to go before, from ante- (before) and cedere (to go).
2. Stage 2 · Latin · ancient antecedens "going before", going before, present participle of antecedere.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1400s antecedent "something that came before or precedes another", settled as the English word for something that came before or precedes another.