 4 definitions found
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
preliminary
adjective: designed to orient or acquaint with a situation before
proceeding; "a preliminary investigation"
noun
1: a minor match preceding the main event [syn: {prelim}]
2: something that serves as a preceding event or introduces
what follows; "training is a necessary preliminary to
employment"; "drinks were the overture to dinner" [syn: {overture},
{prelude}]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Preliminary \Pre*lim"i*na*ry\, adjective [Pref. pre + L. liminaris
belonging to a threshold, fr. limen, liminis, threshold,
entrance: cf. F. pr['e]liminaire. Cf. {Limit}.]
Introductory; previous; preceding the main discourse or
business; prefatory; as, preliminary observations to a
discourse or book; preliminary articles to a treaty;
preliminary measures; preliminary examinations.
Syn: Introductory; preparatory; prefatory; proemial;
previous; prior; precedent; antecedent.
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Preliminary \Pre*lim"i*na*ry\, noun; pl. {Preliminaries}.
That which precedes the main discourse, work, design, or
business; something introductory or preparatory; as, the
preliminaries to a negotiation or duel; to take one's
preliminaries the year before entering college.
Syn: Introduction; preface; prelude.
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
117 Moby Thesaurus words for "preliminary":
advance, advanced, antecedent, anterior, arrangement, avant-garde,
avant-propos, basic training, beginning, breakthrough, briefing,
chief, clearing the decks, coming out, curtain raiser, debut,
embarkation, embarkment, equipment, exordial, exordium,
exploratory, familiarization, first, first appearance, fixing,
floating, flotation, foremost, forerunning, foreword, foundation,
front matter, frontispiece, groundwork, headmost, inaugural,
inaugural address, inauguration, induction, initial, initiation,
initiatory, innovation, installation, installment, introduction,
introductory, launching, leading, leap, maiden speech, makeready,
making ready, manufacture, mobilization, opener, opening, original,
overture, planning, postulate, preamble, prearrangement,
precedence, precedent, preceding, precessional, precursory,
preface, prefatory, prefix, prefixed, prefixture, preliminaries,
preliminary act, preliminary step, prelude, preludial, prelusive,
premise, premonitory, prep, preparation, preparatory,
preparatory study, preparing, prepositive, prepping, prerequisite,
presupposition, pretreatment, prevenient, prior, processing,
prodromal, prodrome, prodromic, proem, proemial, prolegomena,
prolegomenon, prolepsis, prologue, propaedeutic, protasis,
provision, readying, spadework, training, treatment, trial, tryout,
unveiling, verse, voluntary, warm-up
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