# preceding

Pronunciation: say "pri-SEE-ding" /pɹɪˈsiːdɪŋ/

## Adjective

1. Coming earlier in time or order, or placed ahead in position or rank, relative to something else.
   - Simple: Coming just before another thing in time, order, or place.
   - _Her argument built directly on the preceding paragraph._
   - _The committee reviewed decisions made during the preceding administration._

## Verb

2. Present participle and gerund of precede. — present participle and gerund of precede
   - Simple: The -ing form of precede. Use it to name the action, or after a noun to describe it.
   - _A brief speech preceding the awards set a warm tone for the evening._
   - _Preceding the others into the hall, she opened the heavy doors._

## Origin

From Middle English precedyng (also precedenge), the present participle of preceden ("to precede"), equivalent to precede plus the suffix -ing.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/preceding (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).