leading up to

Verb

lead up to (third-person singular simple present leads up to, present participle leading up to, simple past and past participle led up to)

1. (idiomatic) To set in motion; to act as a causal or preparatory event or sequence of events.
   • If it is a new constitution, the historico-legal method is probably the most appropriate, since the events leading up to the introduction of the constitution are still so recent and relevant that they must be used for guidance when the constitution is interpreted.1978, H. Th. J. F. van Maarseveen, Ger F. M. van der Tang, Written Constitutions: A Computerized Comparative Study, →ISBN, page 242
2. To precede in time.
   • With these objectives we examine developments in the years leading up to and including 43 episodes of financial sector distress or crisis (including episodes of repeat crisis) in a total sample of 50 countries.1998, International Monetary Fund, Leading Indicators of Banking Crises: Was Asia Different?, →ISBN
3. To follow or mark a path toward.
   • The old larder gate now serves as the common way to the church, for those who live on the north side, where eighteen or nineteen stone steps lead up to a paved alley, once a gallery of the dormitories, dorture, or lodging rooms of the monks, now for the most part in ruins, or converted to gardens...1828, William Henry Ireland, England's topographer