precession

The act or state of preceding; precedence.

The motion of the axis of a spinning body, such as the wobble of a spinning top, when there is an external force acting on the axis.

Precession of the equinoxes.

A slow gyration of the earth’s rotational axis around the pole of the ecliptic, caused by the gravitational pull of the sun, moon, and other planets on the earth’s equatorial bulge.

In mech., the cyclic movement of the axis of rotation of a body which revolves about a free axis in a field of force. In order that precession shall occur the body must not be a homogeneous sphere and the axis of rotation must be inclined to the lines of force of the field.

The act of going before or of moving forward; advance.

Precedence.

In philology, a weakening of a vowel due to a change of accent; a change from a full strong vowel to a thinner one: opposed to progression.

The act of going before, or forward.