predate C2+ Topic:Time US /priˈdeɪt/ UK /priːˈdeɪt/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 verb to exist or occur before something; to assign an earlier date to These cave paintings predate the invention of writing. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 verb · to exist or occur before... precedeantedateforerun ↔ Opposites postdatefollowsucceed Word family Related forms dateantedatepostdate Etymology AI details From pre- ('before') + date. Date derives from Old French date, from Latin data ('given'), from dare ('to give'). data Latin dare Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Time Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # predate **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** verb **IPA (US):** /priˈdeɪt/ **IPA (UK):** /priːˈdeɪt/ ## Meanings 1. to exist or occur before something; to assign an earlier date to ## Examples - These cave paintings predate the invention of writing. ## Synonyms - precede - antedate - forerun ## Antonyms - postdate - follow - succeed ## Related Forms - date - antedate - postdate ## Roots and Affixes - Root: data - Root: dare ## Etymology From pre- ('before') + date. Date derives from Old French date, from Latin data ('given'), from dare ('to give'). ## AI Etymology Predate is from pre- ('before') + date. Date derives from Old French date, from Latin data ('given'), from dare ('to give'). Important recorded forms include data (Latin) and dare (Latin). Morphologically, the word preserves a built structure whose named elements carry the historical sense into English. The modern sense remains close to that composition, with the parts narrowing into a single lexical item. In current use it covers to exist or occur before something; to assign an earlier date to. The wider family includes related words such as date, antedate, and postdate. ## Topics - Time - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown