precursor
What comes before
A precursor is something that comes before and leads to something else.
In chemistry, a precursor is a compound that participates in a reaction to produce another compound.
More broadly, precursor describes earlier versions, forerunners, or harbingers: The precursor to the modern smartphone was the PDA.
A precursor may anticipate what follows or actively cause it.
One who foreshadows
- portentSign of future calamity
- signMark conveying information
- warningAlert about danger
- indicatorSign revealing status
foreshadowing · presage · foreboding · augury · herald · premonition · signal · forewarning
One who came first
- antecedentSomething that precedes
- ancestorPredecessor in lineage
- prototypeFirst functional specimen
- forefatherAncestor from generations past
forebear · progenitor · archetype · original · primogenitor · first generation · parent · source
Introductory piece or event
- overtureIntroductory orchestral piece
- preamblePreliminary statement before content
- prefaceIntroductory book section
- introductionPreliminary section or presentation
beginning · lead-in · foreword · opening · dawn · genesis · threshold · onset
Substance undergoing chemical change
- intermediateBetween two levels
- substrateUnderlying supporting material
- compoundCombined into one
- monomerChain-forming molecule
polymer · catalyst · enzyme · synthesis · derivative · metabolite · biomolecule · reagent
First to forge ahead
- innovatorCreator of new methods
- pathfinderOne who discovers routes
- groundbreakerInnovator, first to act
- visionaryImaginative planner of futures
trendsetter · vanguard · early adopter · first-mover · originator · founder · initiator · front-runner
harbinger
One who foreshadows
indicator · foreshadowing · presage · foreboding · augury · herald · premonition · signal · forewarning · omen
predecessor
One who came first
- antecedentSomething that precedes
- ancestorPredecessor in lineage
- prototypeFirst functional specimen
forefather · forebear · progenitor · archetype · original · primogenitor · first generation · parent · source · root
prelude
Introductory piece or event
- overtureIntroductory orchestral piece
- preamblePreliminary statement before content
- prefaceIntroductory book section
introduction · beginning · lead-in · foreword · opening · dawn · genesis · threshold · onset · preliminary
reactant
Substance undergoing chemical change
- intermediateBetween two levels
- substrateUnderlying supporting material
- compoundCombined into one
monomer · polymer · catalyst · enzyme · synthesis · derivative · metabolite · biomolecule · reagent · molecule
trailblazer
First to forge ahead
- innovatorCreator of new methods
- pathfinderOne who discovers routes
- groundbreakerInnovator, first to act
visionary · trendsetter · vanguard · early adopter · first-mover · originator · founder · initiator · front-runner · avant-garde
- omensomens, omen, portent, portents, signs
- originatorsfounder, creator, inventor, innovator, pioneer
- seismologyearthquake, earthquakes, seismograph, seismicity, seismometer
- causescause, root cause, primary cause, underlying cause, origin
- literary influenceliterary influence, imitation, inspiration, allusion, homage
- predictorsforecaster, prognosticator, prophet, seer, soothsayer
precursorsuccessor
One who replaces another
descendant · follower · heir · inheritor · offspring
precursorderivative
Function's rate of change
outgrowth · by-product · offshoot · result · outcome