Precede - proceed

The two verbs proceed and precede can be confused, because in rapid speech they sound similar. They are virtual homophones. Note that the spelling is different.

Proceed is one of the 117 mis-spellings listed as 'Common difficulties' in the section on 'Spelling' within 'Writing' in UEfAP.

• To precede means 'to go before'. It is usually transitive - "a person with a mace precedes the Vice-Chancellor on formal occasions"; "King Richard III preceded Henry VII"; "the meal will be preceded by a reception."
• To proceed means 'to go on', or 'to go forward'. It is intransitive - "We will proceed next week"; "the events of the day proceeded as planned"; and "The policemen proceeded on his way". It may be followed by the preposition with - "we will proceed with Agenda item 12"; or "Proceed with your studies."

There is a also a transitive verb to process, meaning to subject raw materials to a process, or a procedure - an activity that will alter them. Some speakers use the verb to proceed something (transitively) in this sense; but for academic English they should not be imitated.