| a. | 1. | Going before; anterior; preceding; antecedent;
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| n. | 1. | Something done or said that may serve as an example to authorize a subsequent act of the same kind; an authoritative example. | |||
| 2. | A preceding circumstance or condition; an antecedent; hence, a prognostic; a token; a sign. | ||||
| 3. | A rough draught of a writing which precedes a finished copy. | ||||
| 4. | (Law) A judicial decision which serves as a rule for future determinations in similar or analogous cases; an authority to be followed in courts of justice; forms of proceeding to be followed in similar cases. | ||||
| Noun | 1. | precedent - an example that is used to justify similar occurrences at a later time Synonyms: case in point |
| 2. | precedent - (civil law) a law established by following earlier judicial decisions Synonyms: common law, case law | |
| 3. | precedent - a system of jurisprudence based on judicial precedents rather than statutory laws; "common law originated in the unwritten laws of England and was later applied in the United States" Synonyms: case law, common law | |
| 4. | precedent - a subject mentioned earlier (preceding in time) | |
| Adj. | 1. | precedent - preceding in time, order, or significance |