PRELIMINARY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does preliminary mean? 

• PRELIMINARY (noun)
  The noun PRELIMINARY has 2 senses:

1. a minor match preceding the main event

2. something that serves as a preceding event or introduces what follows

  Familiarity information: PRELIMINARY used as a noun is rare.

• PRELIMINARY (adjective)
  The adjective PRELIMINARY has 1 sense:

1. denoting an action or event preceding or in preparation for something more important

  Familiarity information: PRELIMINARY used as an adjective is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PRELIMINARY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A minor match preceding the main event

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

prelim; preliminary

Hypernyms ("preliminary" is a kind of...):

athletic competition; athletic contest; athletics (a contest between athletes)

Derivation:

preliminary (denoting an action or event preceding or in preparation for something more important)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Something that serves as a preceding event or introduces what follows

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

overture; preliminary; prelude

Context example:

drinks were the overture to dinner

Hypernyms ("preliminary" is a kind of...):

inception; origin; origination (an event that is a beginning; a first part or stage of subsequent events)

Derivation:

preliminary (denoting an action or event preceding or in preparation for something more important)

• PRELIMINARY (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Denoting an action or event preceding or in preparation for something more important

Context example:

a preliminary investigation

Similar:

explorative; exploratory (serving in or intended for exploration or discovery)

Derivation:

preliminary (something that serves as a preceding event or introduces what follows)

preliminary (a minor match preceding the main event)

 Context examples 

The biodiesel produced has been subject to laboratory testing for quality under the standards set by the National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANP), and the preliminary results proved promising.

(Petrobras considers producing biodiesel from microalgae, Agência Brasil)

A preliminary version of a written work, design, or picture.

(Draft, NCI Thesaurus)

“This is still very preliminary,” Woo said.

(Oxygen-Producing Bacteria Could Help Heart Attack Sufferers, VOA News)

Suddenly, without any preliminary sound in the midst of the utter stillness, the door of my room swung slowly open.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

He attempted to read books that required years of preliminary specialization.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Development and preliminary validation of a pain measure specific to neuropathic pain: The Neuropathic Pain Scale.

(Neuropathic Pain Scale Questionnaire, NCI Thesaurus)

As a preliminary step, I was released from my promise to her.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

My mother had been in a tremble ever since the first rumour of the preliminaries came to our ears, for she knew that he might come as soon as his message.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The unknown knight had sat like a statue of steel, looking neither to the right nor to the left during these preliminaries.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

When dogs fight, there are usually preliminaries to the actual combat—snarlings and bristlings and stiff-legged struttings.

(White Fang, by Jack London)