VocabAhead

Precede vs Proceed

Precedeverb

be earlier in time; go back further

Proceedverb

move ahead; travel onward in time or space

The difference

To precede is to come before. To proceed is to go forward. A short introduction preceded the lecture; she proceeded to the next slide.

How to keep them apart

Precede is about position in a sequence; proceed is about motion. Note the spelling: one c, two e's — and proceed takes the double e.

Other pairs worth knowing

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