/ · 1894 Brewer’s · A · Avant Courier. (French, avant courrier.)
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A “messenger sent before” to get things ready for a party of travellers, or to announce their approach. Anything said or done to prepare the way for something more important to follow; a feeler, a harbinger.
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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.