# proceed
## English
### Alternative forms

* procede (obsolete)

### Etymology

From Middle English proceden, from Old French proceder, from Latin prōcēdō (“I go forth, go forward, advance”), from prō (“forth”) + cēdō (“I go”); see cede.

### Pronunciation

* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /pɹəˈsiːd/
* (General American) IPA: /pɹəˈsid/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Homophone: precede
* Rhymes: -iːd

### Verb

proceed (third-person singular simple present proceeds, present participle proceeding, simple past and past participle proceeded)
* (intransitive) To move, pass, or go forward or onward; to advance; to carry on
    to proceed on a journey
** 1944 July and August, “Top Link Drivers: XXI—Driver H. Blunt, L.N.E.R.”, in Railway Magazine, page 226:Having completed their task, Fireman Page telephoned from a lineside box to the next signal cabin, briefly reported the incident and said that, as no high explosive had dropped and the track was safe, they proposed proceeding "at caution".
** 1960 December, “Talking of Trains: The railways and the Devon floods”, in Trains Illustrated, page 709:[...] and on the Saturday heavy seas pounded the W.R. on its exposed coastal stretch between Dawlish and Teignmouth, loosening the ballast and forcing trains to proceed with extreme caution.
* (intransitive) To pass from one point, topic, or stage, to another.
    to proceed with a story or argument
** 1948, Bernward H. Willeke, Imperial Government and Catholic Missions in China During the Years 1784-1785‎, St. Bonaventure, New York: Franciscan Institute, →OCLC, →OL, page 31:There the missionaries learned that they were to stay for a longer period, and they were lodged in a shed surrounded by rice fields. This was different from what they had expected, because they had been told in Canton that Father Ts’ai had arranged for a place in Hsiang-t’an. They therefore wished to proceed to Hsiang-t’an, but since that was impossible under the circumstances, they asked Liu Shêng-tuan to be their messenger to Father Liu asking him to come to them.
* (intransitive) To come from; to have as its source or origin.
    Light proceeds from the sun.
* (intransitive) To go on in an orderly or regulated manner; to begin and carry on a series of acts or measures; to act methodically
** a. 1705, John Locke, “Of the Conduct of the Understanding”, in Posthumous Works of Mr. John Locke: […], London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], published 1706, →OCLC:He that proceeds upon others’ principles in his enquiry
* (intransitive) To be transacted; to take place; to occur.
** 1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii]:And he will, after his sour fashion, tell you What hath proceeded worthy note to-day
* (intransitive, of a rule) To be applicable or effective; to be valid.
** 1726, John Ayliffe, Parergon Juris Canonici Anglicani: Or, A Commentary, by Way of Supplement to the Canons and Constitutions of the Church of England. […], London: […] D. Leach, and sold by John Walthoe […], →OCLC:[This rule] only proceeds and takes place, when a person cannot of common Right condemn or bind another by his Sentence.
* (law, intransitive) To begin and carry on a legal process.
** 2005, Rodney Stich, Disavow: Sage of Betrayal:“Gentlemen, shall we proceed?” the judge said. From the beginning, Judge Fong appeared bored at Levine's coaxing remarks.
* (intransitive) To take an academic degree.

#### Usage notes

* When used as a catenative verb, proceed takes the to infinitive (i.e. one says proceed to swing, not proceed swing). See Appendix:English catenative verbs.
* Not to be confused with precede.
* Many of the other English verbs ultimately derived from Latin cēdō are spelled ending in "cede", so the misspelling "procede" is common.

#### Synonyms

* progress, forthgo, Thesaurus:proceed

#### Antonyms

* regress
* recede

#### Related terms

* procedure
* process
* procession

#### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

### See also

* proceeds (noun)

### References

* “proceed”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
* “proceed”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

### Anagrams

* copered, pre-Code, precode