forerunner

/ˈfɔːrʌnə(r)/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfɔːrʌnər/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfȯr-ˌrə-nər/ (ame, mw)

forerunner — 名詞

  • forerunnersingular
  • forerunnersplural

1. A person, thing, or event that comes before another of the same general type and

1.名詞B2
釋義

先驅；前兆

為後者鋪路或預示其到來的人事物

A person, thing, or event that comes before another of the same general type and either paves the way for its arrival or gives an early warning that it is coming.

例句

Germany's Green party was said to be the forerunner of environmental parties throughout Europe.

德國綠黨據說是全歐洲環保政黨的先驅。

forerunner of + [type of organisation] for early model

The drop in share prices in March was a forerunner of the financial crash that followed in June.

三月份股價的下跌是隨後六月份金融崩潰的一個前兆。

forerunner of + [event] as warning sign

同義詞
  • precursor

    Very close in meaning, but 'precursor' often sounds more technical or scientific, while 'forerunner' is more general.

  • harbinger

    Only covers the 'warning sign' meaning, not the 'early model' meaning; tends to be literary or formal.

  • herald

    Suggests something that actively announces a coming event; can be a person or thing, but is less common in everyday speech.

反義詞
  • follower

    A person or thing that comes after and continues what the forerunner started.

  • successor

    The person or thing that takes over after a forerunner has prepared the way.

文法句型

forerunner + of + noun phrase

用法筆記

Forerunner can describe either a person or thing that influences later developments (the 'pioneer' meaning) or an event that signals something about to happen (the 'warning' meaning). The context and the noun that follows 'of' make the intended sense clear.

常見錯誤

❌The Wright brothers' plane was the forerunner of all modern airplanes.
✅The Wright brothers' plane was the forerunner of all modern aircraft.
💡'Forerunner' is correct with inventions that paved the way; just replace the informal 'airplane' with 'aircraft' if writing formally.
❌The warm weather was a forerunner that spring had arrived.
✅The warm weather was a forerunner of the spring season.
💡Use 'forerunner of + noun', not 'forerunner that + clause'.