n (rhetoric) The assignment of something to a period of time that precedes it.
n (logic) The anticipation of an objection to an argument.
n (grammar|rhetoric) A construction that consists of placing an element in a syntactic unit before that to which it would logically correspond.
n (philosophy|epistemology) A so-called "preconception", i.e. a pre-theoretical notion which can lead to true knowledge of the world. (rfex)
n (botany)growth | Growth in which lateralbranches develop from a lateral meristem, after the formation of a bud or following a period of dormancy, when the lateral meristem is split from a terminal meristem.