Priority \Pri*or"i*ty\, n. [Cf. F. priorit['e]. See {Prior}, a.] 1. The quality or state of being prior or antecedent in time, or of preceding something else; as, priority of application. 2. Precedence; superior rank. --Shak. {Priority of debts}, a superior claim to payment, or a claim to payment before others. Syn: Antecedence; precedence; pre["e]minence.