Hypertext Webster Gateway: "precedence"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Precedence \Pre*ced"ence\, Precedency \Pre*ced"en*cy\, n. [Cf.
F. pr['e]c['e]dence. See {Precede}.]
1. The act or state of preceding or going before in order of
time; priority; as, one event has precedence of another.
2. The act or state of going or being before in rank or
dignity, or the place of honor; right to a more honorable
place; superior rank; as, barons have precedence of
commoners.
Which of them [the different desires] has the
precedency in determining the will to the next
action? --Locke.
Syn: Antecedence; priority; pre["e]minence; preference;
superiority.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
precedence
n 1: status established in order of importance or urgency:
"...its precedence as the world's leading manufacturer
of pharmaceuticals"; "national independence takes
priority over class struggle" [syn: {precedency}, {priority}]
2: preceding in time [syn: {priority}, {antecedence}, {antecedency},
{anteriority}, {precedency}] [ant: {posteriority}]
3: the act of preceding (as in a ceremony) [syn: {precession},
{precedency}]
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