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Posterity vs Successor - What's the difference?

posterity | successor |

As nouns the difference between posterity and successor

is that posterity is all the future generations, especially the descendants of a specific person while successor is a person or thing that immediately follows another in holding an office or title.

posterity

English

Noun

(-)
  • All the future generations, especially the descendants of a specific person.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham)
    • , title=(The China Governess) , chapter=1 citation , passage=The original family who had begun to build a palace to rival Nonesuch had died out before they had put up little more than the gateway, so that the actual structure which had come down to posterity retained the secret magic of a promise rather than the overpowering splendour of a great architectural achievement.}}

    Related terms

    * See post-

    References

    successor

    English

    (wikipedia successor)

    Alternative forms

    * successour (obsolete)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A person or thing that immediately follows another in holding an office or title.
    • George W. Bush was successor to Bill Clinton as President of the US.
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2012 , date=May 5 , author=Phil McNulty , title=Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=As Di Matteo celebrated and captain John Terry raised the trophy for the fourth time, the Italian increased his claims to become the permanent successor to Andre Villas-Boas by landing a trophy.}}
  • The next heir in order or succession.
  • A person who inherits a title or office.
  • (arithmetic, set theory) The integer, ordinal number or cardinal number immediately following another.

    • Synonyms

    * (l) (uncommon)

    Antonyms

    * predecessor