/fawr"run'euhr, fohr"-, fawr run"euhr, fohr-/ , n.
1. predecessor; ancestor; forebear; precursor.
2. an omen, sign, or indication of something to follow; portent: The warm evenings were a forerunner of summer.
3. a person who goes or is sent in advance to announce the coming of someone or something that follows; herald; harbinger.
4. the Forerunner , John the Baptist.
[ 1250-1300; ME forrenner. See FORE-, RUNNER ]