preventive
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preventive
- /pɹɪˈvɛntɪv/
Where it comes from
Borrowed from New Latin praeventīvus. Equivalent to prevent + -ive.
adjective more preventive · most preventive · preventative
- Preventing, hindering, or acting as an obstacle to. ...and I sometimes think whether, like the ancient king, it would not be prudent to make an offering to destiny, and throw my set of emeralds into the lake." Emily could not but deprecate the emeralds being destined to any such preventive service;...
- Carried out to deter military aggression.
- Slowing the development of an illness; prophylactic. Physick is either curative or preventive.
- Going before; preceding. Any previous counsel or preventive understanding.
noun preventives · preventative
- A thing that prevents, hinders, or acts as an obstacle to. Dogs should be warmly but airily housed; heartily, but not heatingly, fed — old Indian meal, mixed with oatmeal, suppawn, is the best general food, with a small quantity of salt, which is a preventive against worms […]
- A thing that slows the development of an illness. A good preventive against heart disease is a healthy lifestyle.
- A contraceptive, especially a condom.
Similar: prophylactic
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: deterrent, prohibitory, thwarting, prohibitive, preclusive, obstructive, hindering, hindrance, interference, preventative, encumbrance, incumbrance, clogging, precautional, precautionary, frustrative
noun
Similar: prophylactic
Translations
Every language
adj preventing, hindering, or acting as an obstacle to
| Español | preventivo |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 抑止力となる |
| Français | préventif |
| Deutsch | vorbeugend, präventiv, vorsorglich |
| العربية | اِحْتِرَازِيّ iḥtirāziyy |
adj slowing the development of an illness
| Français | préventif |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | vorbeugend, präventiv |
| العربية | وِقَائِيّ wiqāʔiyy |
Talk about this word "preventive." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/preventive. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. preventive. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/preventive "preventive." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/preventive.Cite this
@misc{preventive_2026,
title = {preventive},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/preventive},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
