forerunner

[ fawr-ruhn-er, fohr-, fawr-ruhn-er, fohr- ]
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noun
  1. predecessor; ancestor; forebear; precursor.

  2. an omen, sign, or indication of something to follow; portent: The warm evenings were a forerunner of summer.

  1. a person who goes or is sent in advance to announce the coming of someone or something that follows; herald; harbinger.

  2. the Forerunner, John the Baptist.

Origin of forerunner

1
First recorded in 1250–1300, forerunner is from the Middle English word forrenner.See fore-, runner

Words Nearby forerunner

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use forerunner in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for forerunner

forerunner

/ (ˈfɔːˌrʌnə) /


noun
  1. a person or thing that precedes another; precursor

  2. a person or thing coming in advance to herald the arrival of someone or something; harbinger

  1. an indication beforehand of something to follow; omen; portent

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