Where does “precedent” come from?

Precedent derives from Latin praecedens, from Latin praecedo, from Latin cedo meaning to go or yield, combined with Latin prae meaning before, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to go forward.

precedent (English): An act in the past which may be used as an...

Definitions

  1. An act in the past which may be used as an...

Ancestry of “precedent”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinpraecēdēnspreceding
2Latinpraecēdōto precede (go before)
3Latinprae-before; in front; in charge
4Proto-Italicprai-pre-, before
5Proto-Indo-Europeanpreh₂-before, in front
6Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “precedent”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →Every word from Proto-Indo-European per- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European preh₂- →