ANTECEDENTS Synonyms: 69 Similar and Opposite Words

antecedents

noun

plural of antecedent

as in causes

someone or something responsible for a result what are the antecedents of the American Revolutionary War?

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in forerunners

something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed the typewriter is the antecedent of the computer keyboard

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of antecedents Israel has traditionally avoided official dialogue with far-right parties in Europe, where many factions have direct antecedents in post-Second World War neofascist movements. — Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2026 Her model suggests that antecedents, physiological state and consequences continuously influence one another, with behavior emerging as the result of that interaction. — Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 2 June 2026 After millennia of antecedents, this latest trend of trying to enlist God into warfare didn’t start in America, of course. — Andreas Kluth, Twin Cities, 3 Apr. 2026 Many musical and social antecedents are responsible for its birth. — Literary Hub, 17 Feb. 2026 Went on to tackle malaria, and that process created both huge successes in modern public health, but also seeded the American public health system county by county across this country, and presented the antecedents of the Centers for Disease Control based in Atlanta. — Christopher Dilella, CNBC, 17 Feb. 2026 For Ann Lee, an arthouse musical that counts among its closest antecedents Robert Eggers’ The Witch and the Björk-starring Dancer in the Dark, Blumberg reworked and retrofitted 10 traditional Shaker hymns, and recorded Seyfried and the other actors live on set. — Walden Green, Pitchfork, 22 Jan. 2026 My poem works by multisequencing; in each of the three book-sections there are four narratives, and the reader must gather each piece of the narrative as it unspools and connect it to its antecedents—that yields compression. — Ange Mlinko, The New York Review of Books, 23 Oct. 2025 The parallel plotlines involving Ali’s possible descendants and problematic antecedents, including a father (Ercan Kesal) who seems to be particularly abusive towards his wife, collide in highly unusual ways during the movie’s volatile second half. — Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Jan. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for antecedents

Noun

The Hurts episode is an apt reminder of why the organization seeks to educate the public more about symptoms and causes.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 24 Oct. 2026
Griffin’s contributions highlight the role wealthy donors play in Florida politics, where political committees can raise substantial sums to support candidates and causes.

— Luisa Yanez, Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of causes

Noun

Rather than try to replicate his forerunners’ styles of success, Ternus has so far played to his own strengths—which are also those of Apple, a company that first and foremost builds beautiful products that spark productivity, creativity, and joy.

— Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
Margaret and Alice are the forerunners of Lucy and Ethel, and Shakespeare’s comedy, written expressly to entertain, gives us a sense of what an Elizabethan-era situation comedy might look like.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026

Definition of forerunners

Noun

Many of those outcomes can be attributed to social determinants of health, like affordability, care access and transportation.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2026
Katie Garfield, who studies social determinants of health at Harvard Law School's Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation, said the lack of federal guidance is stirring uncertainty for states that want to pursue nutrition programs in Medicaid.

— Priyanka D McCluskey, NPR, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of determinants

Noun

Athorp’s easygoing, unassuming demeanor belies his decades-long experience and expertise, which are rooted in the knowledge passed down by his Indigenous ancestors.

— Kate Nelson, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Oct. 2026
According to family history, DaCosta Levy’s family lineage traced to Portugal, where his ancestors had been mariners — almost certainly Sephardic Jews who scattered across the Atlantic world after the Inquisition.

— Zachary Kranc, Sun Sentinel, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of ancestors

Noun

Should tens of thousands of American lives have been saved as a result of decisions made about fentanyl precursors in China, the implications are massive.

— J. Travis Donahoe, STAT, 23 Oct. 2026
Just as concerning, the pair may run into the same eligibility issues at the precursors as Seyfried.

— Nate Jones, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of precursors

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antecedently

antecedents

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“Antecedents.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/antecedents. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of antecedents

noun

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