precedence (n.)

A term used in GENERATIVE LINGUISTICS to refer to a type of relationship between pairs of NODES in a PHRASE-MARKER. One node precedes another when it occurs anywhere to the left of the other in the phrase-marker: if it occurs immediately to the left of a node X, the node ‘immediately precedes’ X. In GENERALIZED PHRASE-STRUCTURE GRAMMAR, linear precedence rules take the form X < Y (i.e. X must precede Y). The ‘horizontal’ relationship of precedence should be distinguished from the ‘vertical’ relationship between nodes, known as DOMINANCE. When a node A dominates another node B, neither A nor B precedes the other.