Precedent Meaning
/ˈpɹɛs.ɪ.dənt/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounAn act in the past which may be used as an example to help decide the outcome of similar instances in the future.
nounA decided case which is cited or used as an example to justify a judgment in a subsequent case.
Sentence Examples
There is no precedent for such a case.
It's totally without precedent for the suspect's attorney to be the true culprit.
The ruling set a precedent for future libel cases.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The judge cited a previous court ruling as a ____ for her decision.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The court's ruling set a legal ____ that would influence similar cases for decades to come.
Word Origin & History
From Middle French, from Old French, from Latin praecēdēns, present participle of praecēdere (“to precede”); See precede.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Examples for cases can but direct as precedents only."
— [1594], Richard Hooker, edited by J[ohn] S[penser], Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], London: […] Iohn Windet, […], →OCLC, (please specify the page):
"My Lord Melun, let this be copied out,
I did suppose it should be on constraint ;
And keep it safe for our remembrance :
But , heaven be thank'd , it is but voluntary ,
Return the precedent to these lords again"
— c. 1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life and Death of King Iohn”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii]:
"In the precedent section mention was made, amongst other pleasant objects, of this comeliness and beauty which proceeds from women […]."
— 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition III, section 2, member 1, subsection i:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The judge cited a previous court ruling as a ____ for her decision.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The court's ruling set a legal ____ that would influence similar cases for decades to come.