- of, involving, or serving as a preface; introductory
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
pref•a•to•ry
(pref′ə tôr′ē, -tōr′ē),USA pronunciation adj.
pref′a•to′ri•ly, adv.
- of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a preface:prefatory explanations.
- Latin praefāt(iō) preface + -ory1
- 1665–75
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
prefatory /ˈprɛfətərɪ; -trɪ/, prefatorial /ˌprɛfəˈtɔːrɪəl/ adj
pref•ace /ˈprɛfɪs/USA pronunciation
n., v., -aced, -ac•ing.
n. [countable]
v. [~ + object]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026n. [countable]
- a statement in the front of a book by the author or editor, setting forth the book's purpose, etc.:The preface occupied a mere one page.
- an introductory part, as of a speech.
v. [~ + object]
- to provide with a preface:He prefaced his speech with remarks about his opponent.
pref•ace
(pref′is),USA pronunciation n., v., -aced, -ac•ing.
n.
v.t.
pref′ac•er, n.
n.
- a preliminary statement in a book by the book's author or editor, setting forth its purpose and scope, expressing acknowledgment of assistance from others, etc.
- an introductory part, as of a speech.
- something preliminary or introductory:The meeting was the preface to an alliance.
- Religion[Eccles.]a prayer of thanksgiving, the introduction to the canon of the Mass, ending with the Sanctus.
v.t.
- to provide with or introduce by a preface.
- to serve as a preface to.
- Medieval Latin prēfātia, for Latin praefātiō a saying beforehand, equivalent. to praefāt(us) (past participle of praefārī to say beforehand; see pre-, fate) + -iōn- -ion
- Middle French
- Middle English 1350–1400
- 1. See introduction. 2. 3. preamble, prologue, prolegomena.
- 1. appendix. 2. 3. epilogue.
'prefatory' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
introductory
- prologue
- dedicate
- precede
- pref.
- preliminary
- prolegomenon
- prolegomenous
- salutation