adjective

Etymology: ME & OFr < L antecedens, prp. of antecedere, antecede

noun

1. any happening or thing prior to another
2. anything logically preceding
3. one's ancestry, past life, training, etc.
4. Gram. the word, phrase, or clause to which a pronoun refers “man” is the antecedent of “who” in “the man who spoke”
5. Logic the part of a conditional proposition that states the condition
6. Math. the first term or numerator of a ratio