predecessor
noun /ˈpriːdəsesə(r)/
/ˈpredəsesər/
- a person who did a job before somebody else
- The new president reversed many of the policies of his predecessor.
- his immediate predecessor in the post
- my predecessor at the Ministry of Defence
- a thing, such as a machine, that has been followed or replaced by something else
- This computer has a larger memory than its predecessor.
compare successor
Word Originlate Middle English: from late Latin praedecessor, from Latin prae ‘beforehand’ + decessor ‘retiring officer’ (from decedere ‘depart’).