preliminary
English · Thesaurus
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preliminary
- /pɹɪˈlɪmɪn(ə)ɹi/ UK
- /pɹɪˈlɪmɪnɛɹi/ US
- /pɹiˈlɪmɪnɛɹi/ US
Where it comes from
Borrowed from New Latin praelīmināris, formed from prae- (“before”) + līmen (“threshold”) + -āris (adjectival suffix); compare Latin līmināris (“of or belonging to a threshold”). Compare French préliminaire.
adjective præliminary
-
In preparation for the main matter; initial, introductory, preparatory.
These are just the preliminary results.
Similar: initial, introductory, preparatory · Opposite: definitive, final
noun preliminaries · præliminary
- A preparation for a main matter; an introduction. In the Chinese novels, often of a very literary character, devoted to masculine love, it seems that all the preliminaries and transports of normal love are to be found, while physical union may terminate the scene.
- Any of a series of sports events that determine the finalists.
- A relatively minor contest that precedes a major one, especially in boxing.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: prelude, prelim, overture, explorative, exploratory, lead-in, pretrial, pre-test, introductory, preview, ex-ante, prior, previous, pre-release, early, introduction
Translations
Every language
adj in preparation for the main matter
| Español | preliminar |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 예비의 yebiui |
| 日本語 | 予備的 yobiteki |
| 中文 | 初步 chūbù, 預備 /预备 yùbèi |
| Português | preliminar |
| Français | préliminaire |
| Deutsch | vorläufig, vorbereitend |
| Italiano | preliminare |
| Română | introductiv, preliminar, pregătitor |
| Русский | предвари́тельный predvarítelʹnyj, подготови́тельный podgotovítelʹnyj |
noun any of a series of sports
| 日本語 | 予選 yosen |
|---|
Talk about this word "preliminary." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/preliminary. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. preliminary. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/preliminary "preliminary." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/preliminary.Cite this
@misc{preliminary_2026,
title = {preliminary},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/preliminary},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
