precursor
nounnoun NAmE//prɪˈkərsər//
, NAmE//ˈpriˌkərsər//
precursor (of/to something) (formal)
jump to other results a person or thing that comes before someone or something similar and that leads to or influences its development synonym forerunner a stringed instrument that was the precursor of the guitar events that were precursors to revolution
See precursor in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary