Emily Dickinson Lexicon

AN-TE-CES'SOR, n. [L. whence Ancestor. See Antecede.]

1. One who goes before; a leader; a principal. It was formerly a title given to those who excelled in any science; to professors of civil law; and in the universities of France, the teachers of law take the title in their theses.
2. One that possessed land before the present possessor. – Brady.