preceding
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.happening or coming just before the thing you are talking about.
adj.existing or occurring before something else in time, order, or position.
Simple“The information in the preceding chapter explains why the character is angry.”
In context“The preceding events had left the population wary of any further promises from the interim government.”
UsageUsually placed immediately before the noun it modifies.
Antonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
v.the action of going or happening before something else.
v.the present participle of 'precede', used to describe the act of going before in rank, time, or place.
Simple“The band played a short set preceding the main performance.”
In context“The years preceding the revolution were marked by extreme economic instability and social unrest.”
UsageOften used as a participle to link two events in a sentence.
SynonymsAntonyms
Usage preceding chapter · preceding period · preceding section
“Unfortunately, the fact that it falls on a Saturday doesn’t mean that workers will necessarily get a day off on either the preceding Friday or following Monday to make up for it.”
“It looks as if the British farmers who had been building Stonehenge over the preceding centuries all but disappeared – again, for reasons which remain unclear.”
From Middle English precedyng, precedenge, present participle of Middle English preceden (“to precede”), equivalent to precede + -ing.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.