Anterior: meaning, example and synonyms
Anterioradj. Situated at or toward the front, especially of a body or structure.
Example
In the fish the biologist examined, the anterior fins were much larger than those near the tail, suggesting they were used mainly for steering.
- Part of speech
- adjective
- Synonyms
- front, forward, fore, frontal
- Antonyms
- posterior, rear, back, hind
- Memory tip
- ante = before: anterior is in front, posterior is behind.
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Check yourself: Anterior in context
In most vertebrates the brain sits at the ______ end of the body, close to the eyes and mouth that first meet the environment as the animal moves forward.
Answer: anterior. The forward end of the body is the anterior end. Scanty (meager), arcane (obscure) and extraneous (irrelevant) don't fit this context.
Injuries to the ______ ligament of the knee, the one toward the front of the joint, are common among athletes who pivot suddenly.
Answer: anterior. A ligament toward the front of the joint is anterior. Ingenious (inventive), disparate (very different) and precarious (unstable) don't fit this context.