pre-

¹ American

Also prae-

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 ).

P.R.E. ² American

abbreviation

Petroleum Refining Engineer.

pre- British

prefix

before in time, rank, order, position, etc

predate
pre-eminent
premeditation
prefrontal
preschool

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of pre-

< Latin prae-, prefixal use of prae (preposition and adv.); akin to first, fore-, prior ¹, pro ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Eliminating the need to find a pre- or post-show restaurant, Vinyl Room has a full Asian-inspired menu created by Chef Ryan DeRieux.

From Los Angeles Times

For the weight of the ten largest companies in the S&P 500 to return to the pre-2020 average of 20.8% from 40.7% in December, the rest of the index would need to return more than 160%, if the top stocks were to remain flat.

From MarketWatch

Deep tech -- innovation based on major scientific or engineering advances such as artificial intelligence, biotech and quantum computing -- returned in 2025 to its pre-2021 levels, according to the IIA.

From Barron's

This calcium surge further activates the myCAFs, encouraging pre cancerous growth.

From Science Daily

But neither of them much resembles their pre-1980 identities today, and what they will look like in the future is anyone’s guess.

From Salon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023