foreganger

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English forganger, forgangere, from Old English *foregangere, from foregangan (“to go before, precede, go in front of, project, excel”), equivalent to fore- +‎ ganger. Cognate with Scots foregangare (“a foregoer”), Dutch voorganger (“a predecessor, progenitor”), German Vorgänger (“a predecessor, precursor”), Swedish föregångare (“a forerunner, precursor, progenitor”). === Noun === foreganger (plural foregangers) (archaic, rare) One who or that which goes before; a forerunner; a harbinger; a predecessor. (nautical) A short rope grafted on a harpoon, to which a longer line may be attached. === References === “foreganger”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.