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precursor

[pri-kur-ser, pree-kur-] / prɪˈkɜr sər, ˈpri kɜr- /
NOUN
something that indicates outcome or event beforehand
Synonyms




Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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Victoria Dittmar, a researcher at InSight Crime, a think tank, has spent years investigating the flow of precursor chemicals into Mexico.

From BBC Jul. 13, 2026

Fat cells originate from precursor cells known as progenitor cells.

From Science Daily Jul. 3, 2026

This field is considered the next frontier in practical quantum technology and the precursor to a quantum internet, akin to the classical networks that allow computers to communicate today.

From Barron's Jun. 30, 2026

A claim is typically a precursor to a lawsuit.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 23, 2026

It merged in 1994 with another company in a 2.4-billion-dollar deal, a precursor to the dot-com boom.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

“The use of the books at issue to train Claude and its precursors was exceedingly transformative and was a fair use,” Alsup noted in his earlier judgment.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 23, 2026

They are now looking to expand their own production of guncotton, and assessing alternative natural precursors to make it.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 20, 2026

The White House document claimed they had discussed Chinese investment in U.S. industries, purchases of U.S. oil and agricultural products, and ending the flow of fentanyl precursors into the U.S.

From Slate May 16, 2026

This is a problem the EU and its precursors have been thinking about for a long time.

From Barron's Mar. 30, 2026

Those wild cereal harvests were precursors to the domestication of the earliest crops, the cereals wheat and barley, in the Fertile Crescent.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond




Vocabulary lists containing precursor


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