It means that sth. happens before other things or comes before sth./sb. in order; or means that someone goes in front of others.
它指的是某事发生在其他事之前或在次序上先于某事或某人；或指某人走在他人前面。
During the years preceding the war, the contradictions deepened gradually.
在战前的几年期间，矛盾逐渐深化了。
The earthquake was preceded by a loud roar and lasted for a long time.
地震前有一阵巨大的轰隆声，持续了很久。
After the meeting, Linda preceded him out of the room.
会议结束后，Linda先于他走出了房间。
Proceed /prəˈsi:d/
Proceed /prəˈsi:d/
v. 进行；前进；（沿特定路线）行进；（尤指打断后）继续说
It means to do a thing after doing something else first; or to continue doing sth. that has already been started; or to move or travel in a particular direction.
它指的是在先做了别的事后，去做某事（常用搭配是proceed to do sth. 接着做，继而做）；或指继续做已经开始做的事（常用搭配是proceed with sth. 继续做/进行某事）；或是指在特定的方向上移动或行进。
After that, my mother proceeded with telling a story for me.
后来，我妈妈继续给我讲故事。
He raised some problems in our plan and then proceeded to give us some suggestions.
他先是提出了一些我们计划中问题，接着又给了我们一些建议。
He climbed the steps and proceeded along the upstairs.
