predate

[ pree-deyt ]

verb (used with object)

, pre·dat·ed, pre·dat·ing.

1. to date before the actual time; antedate:

   He predated the check by three days.

2. to precede in date:

   a house that predates the Civil War.

predate

/ priːˈdeɪt /

verb

1. to affix a date to (a document, paper, etc) that is earlier than the actual date
2. to assign a date to (an event, period, etc) that is earlier than the actual or previously assigned date of occurrence
3. to be or occur at an earlier date than; precede in time

Word History and Origins

Origin of predate¹

First recorded in 1860–65; pre- + date ¹

Example Sentences

Cancellation is by no means sufficient to address the student debt crisis—which predates the pandemic—or reach all of the people the pandemic has hurt.

From Time

For one, his excursions predate the Age of Enlightenment for wildlife protection and conservation.

From Washington Post

All were made in 2020, but some address concerns that far predate the pandemic.

From Washington Post

The character herself, of course, predates that series by decades.

From Washington Blade

Although mail-in voting long predates the pandemic, the 2020 elections expanded access to it as Americans took advantage in vast numbers.

From MIT Technology Review

But he appears to have been a 32-year-old native of Quebec with a history of legal troubles that predate his radicalization.

From The Daily Beast

“Parents can be reassured with the finding that sexting may predate sexual behavior,” said Dr. Temple.

From The Daily Beast

Widespread greed, corruption, and sexual violence predate economic liberalization in 1991.

From The Daily Beast

"The issues at stake in Bahrain predate the Arab Spring," Husain said in an interview with The Daily Beast.

From The Daily Beast

Most of these pieces predate Cleopatra VII but give a stunning sense of her Alexandria.

From The Daily Beast

Does a discovery or invention predate a change in scale, or is the new scale a result of it or of several related phenomena?

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• anticipate
• foreshadow
• outrank
• presage