Ăn'te-çĕs'sor, n.

n. [Lat., from antecedere, antecessum. See ANTECEDE and ANCESTOR.] 1. One who goes before; a leader; a predecessor. A venerable regard not inferior to any of his antecessors. Wood. Much higher than any of its antecessors. Carlyle. ☞ It was formerly a title given to those who excelled in any science, and to professors of civil law. 2. (Law.) One who possessed land before the present possessor; an ancestor. Brady.