forerunner
Americannoun
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predecessor; ancestor; forebear; precursor.
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an omen, sign, or indication of something to follow; portent.
The warm evenings were a forerunner of summer.
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a person who goes or is sent in advance to announce the coming of someone or something that follows; herald; harbinger.
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the Forerunner, John the Baptist.
noun
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a person or thing that precedes another; precursor
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a person or thing coming in advance to herald the arrival of someone or something; harbinger
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an indication beforehand of something to follow; omen; portent
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of forerunner
First recorded in 1250–1300, forerunner is from the Middle English word forrenner. See fore-, runner
Explanation
A forerunner is someone or something that came before and paved the way for something today. Rotary phones were forerunners of today's complex cell phones. The prefix fore- in forerunner is a clue that this word has to do with things that came before. A forerunner is someone from the past who preceded someone today, making new things possible. In the NBA, players like Wilt Chamberlain were forerunners of centers who played later. Early, gigantic computers were forerunners of today's sleek sophisticated computers. George Washington was a forerunner of every US president who has served since. Make sure to thank forerunners for paving the way for the rest of us slackers.
Vocabulary lists containing forerunner
Power Prefix: fore-
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: fore-
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Spooked
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Garmin Forerunner 945 $380 $599 37% off This high-end rugged outdoors smartwatch is a good option for triathletes with music storage, built-in GPS, two-week battery life, contactless payments, safety features, and full-color maps.
From The Verge • Jul. 12, 2022
The last-gen Garmin Forerunner 945 is $220 off at $379.99.
From The Verge • Jul. 12, 2022
“We’ve been in a long bull market,” said Kirsten Green, an investor with Forerunner Ventures, adding that the pullback was partly a reaction to that frenzied period of dealmaking, as well as to macroeconomic uncertainty.
From New York Times • Jul. 7, 2022
Altogether, these are helpful tools for runners — though triathletes can also benefit now that Garmin’s added the triathlete activity to the Forerunner 255 lineup.
From The Verge • Jun. 17, 2022
John was more than a prophet, because he not only prophesied of Christ as so many other prophets had done, but he was the last of the prophets, the immediate Forerunner of the Messias.
From Ortus Christi Meditations for Advent by Paul, Mother St.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
