prefix
English
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French prefixer (verb) resp. Late Latin praefixum (noun), both from Latin praefixus, past participle of praefīgō (“I (fix, fasten, set up) in front”, “I fix on the (end, extremity)”) (from prae- (“before”) + fīgō (“I fix”, “I fasten”, “I affix”)), equivalent to pre- + -fix.
Pronunciation
- (noun) IPA(key): /ˈpɹiːfɪks/, /pɹɛˈfɪks/
Audio (Southern England) (file) Audio (US) (file)
- (verb) IPA(key): /ˈpɹiːfɪks/, /pɹiːˈfɪks/, /pɹɛˈfɪks/
Audio (Southern England) (file)
- Rhymes: -ɪks
Noun
prefix (plural prefixes)
- Something placed before another
- (grammar, linguistic morphology) A morpheme added to the beginning of a word to modify its meaning, for example as, pre- in prefix, con- in conjure, re- in reheat, etc.
- Synonyms: (rare) foresyllable, (archaic) prefixum
- Antonym: suffix
- Hypernyms: (broad sense) affix, morpheme
- (telecommunications) A set of digits placed before a telephone number, to indicate where the number is based, what type of phone number it is (landline, mobile, toll-free, premium rate etc.)
- in the UK, a number with an 0800 prefix is a toll-free number.
- Add the prefix +34 to dial a Spanish number from abroad
- A title added to a person's name, such as Mr. or Dr.
- (computing) An initial segment of a string of characters.
- The string "abra" is both a prefix and a suffix of the string "abracadabra".
- (grammar, linguistic morphology) A morpheme added to the beginning of a word to modify its meaning, for example as, pre- in prefix, con- in conjure, re- in reheat, etc.
Usage notes
- Though much less common, a plural form prefices is seen as well, apparently formed by analogy with index–indices, appendix–appendices, and so on, but it is not a standard plural and has no basis in Latin.
Synonyms
- forefix (rare)
Coordinate terms
Derived terms
Translations
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Verb
prefix (third-person singular simple present prefixes, present participle prefixing, simple past and past participle prefixed)
- (transitive) To determine beforehand; to set in advance. [from 15thc.]
- 1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 40, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book I, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC:
- But the danger was, that a man can hardly prefix any certaine limits unto his desire […].
- 2002, Thomas R. West, Signs of Struggle, page 23:
- It is important to realize that pregivenness or prefixing is a kind of anteriority that does its work in the present; subjects and meanings in part emerge in enuciative co-constitutive moments.
- (transitive) To put or fix before, or at the beginning of something; to place at the start. [from 16thc.]
Translations
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See also
- Appendix:English nationality prefixes
- Category:English prefixes
- coverb
Further reading
- prefix on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- “prefix”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “prefix”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
Anagrams
Catalan
Etymology
Borrowed from Late Latin praefixum, from Latin praefixus.
Czech
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [ˈprɛfɪks]
- Rhymes: -ɪks
- Hyphenation: pre‧fix
Declension
Derived terms
- prefixový
Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈpreːfɪks/
Audio (file)
Etymology 1
Borrowed from post-Classical Latin praefixum, nominal use of the neuter form of Classical Latin praefixus, past participle of praefīgō (“I (fix, fasten, set up) in front”, “I fix on the (end, extremity)”) — the noun directly thence, whereas the adjective via French préfixe.
Alternative forms
- praefix (archaic)
Noun
prefix n or m (plural prefixen, diminutive prefixje n)
- prefix
- Synonym: voorvoegsel
- Antonyms: suffix, achtervoegsel
Etymology 2
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Romanian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pɾeˈfiks/