English
forestep
From fore- + step.
Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘before, formerly’
Proto-Germanic *fura- ‘before, in front of, for’
Proto-West Germanic *forē- ‘before, in front of, fore-, pre-’
English fore-
Proto-Indo-European *stebʰ- ‘to support’
Proto-Germanic *stapjaną ‘to step’
Proto-West Germanic *stappjan ‘to step’
Old English steppan ‘to step’
Middle English steppen ‘to step’
English step
Today it means
noun an initial, previous, or early step; a prior stage or phase in a process or development cycle
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / forestep