To all dear teachers,
I would appreciate it if you could provide me with a selection of words if it doesn't (since I've tried several possibilities that looked like a verb). I'd use the word in an example such as this:
These repeated events were ________ by common changes.....
Thanks in advance
forerun/preceded
BTW, "does the word have" not "has".
Last edited by tedtmc; 16-Apr-2010 at 11:30.
I had to look up "forerun" because I had never seen it before. Indeed, the dictionary's definition makes it exactly the right word, but it's not a common one in the U.S.
I have a reasonably advanced vocabulary and so do my colleagues and if I used that word, they would look at me quizzically.
Perhaps this extremely apt word is in more common use elsewhere. It deserves to be. But don't use it here.
I'm not a teacher, but I write for a living. Please don't ask me about 2nd conditionals, but I'm a safe bet for what reads well in (American) English.
It's worth pointing out (though it may be unnecessary for many readers) that 'forerun' is pronounced as only two syllables: /fɔ:'rʌn/ . The vowel in the 'run' part inflects as you'd expect; so the simple past is 'foreran'.
If the first thing (the forerunner) doesn't influence or lead to the second thing, bur only hints at ts coming, you could also use 'foreshadow' or 'give a foretaste'.
b