pre-
a prefix occurring originally in loanwords from Latin, where it meant “before” ( preclude; prevent ); applied freely as a prefix, with the meanings “prior to,” “in advance of,” “early,” “beforehand,” “before,” “in front of,” and with other figurative meanings ( preschool; prewar; prepay; preoral; prefrontal ).
Dictionary.com Unabridged
P.R.E.
Petroleum Refining Engineer.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To pre
00:10
Pre
is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
| an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance. |
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
| pre- | |
| —prefix | |
| before in time, rank, order, position, etc: predate; pre-eminent; premeditation; prefrontal; preschool | |
| [from Latin prae-, from prae before, beforehand, in front] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
pre-
prefix meaning "before," from O.Fr. pre- and M.L. pre-, both from L. præ (adv.) "before," from PIE *prai- (cf. Oscan prai, Umbrian pre, Skt. pare "thereupon," Gk. parai "at," Gaul. are- "at, before," Lith. pre "at," O.C.S. pri "at," Goth. faura, O.E. fore "before"), variant of base per- "beyond."
The L. word was active in forming compound verbs.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
pre- pref.
Earlier; before; prior to: prenatal.
Anterior; in front of: preaxial.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Abbreviations & Acronyms
| PRE progressive resistive exercise |
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
Kittens will be delivered via private jet courier to pre-selected veterinary offices where owners can pick them up.
In the car boots will be laptop computers, cash-counting machines and pre-printed signs that can be stuck on the windows.
They supply a collection kit that comes with nine vials pre-loaded with cookie crumbs.
It guides them through the pre-grad school process including grad-level writing and preparation skills.
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