forerunner

[ fawr-ruhn-er, fohr-, fawr-ruhn-er, fohr- ]

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.

3. a person who goes or is sent in advance to announce the coming of someone or something that follows; herald; harbinger.
4. the Forerunner, John the Baptist.

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of forerunner¹

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

Example Sentences

This technique, a forerunner to the new LLM compression approach, was published in 2023.

From Science Daily

The flames would then be spread across the country for about 1,200 forerunners to relay.

From BBC

Ms Nash began her career at the age of 21 with Eastern Airlines, the forerunner of American Airlines, working on its shuttle flight between Washington DC, where she lived, and Boston.

From BBC

Gemini's forerunner, Bard, also got off to a disastrous start.

From BBC

You have no problem accepting her as the forerunner to Theron’s older incarnation.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• precursor