preeminent
or pre-em·i·nent
[ pree-em-uh-nuhnt ]
/ priˈɛm ə nənt /
adjective
eminent above or before others; superior; surpassing: He is preeminent in his profession.
RELATED CONTENT
Imminent, Immanent, Or Eminent?When something is imminent, that means it’s impending. Immanent isn’t a typo, it means inherent. Eminent means distinguished. Imminent Imminent means likely to occur at any moment or impending. It refers to something that’s approaching, about to happen, anticipated, or threatening to occur. For example, in Coquette, author Frank Swinnerton uses the word to describe someone’s arrival: “While she was waiting, she one day received …
RELATED WORDS
transcendent, inimitable, unparalleled, unmatched, exceptional, dominant, preeminent, outstanding, top, well-known, famous, popular, prominent, main, noted, best, principal, full, dictatorial, arbitrary
Nearby words
- preelection,
- preemergence,
- preemergent,
- preemie,
- preeminence,
- preeminently,
- preemphasis,
- preemployment,
- preempt,
- preemption
Origin of preeminent
SYNONYMS FOR preeminent
Synonym study
See dominant.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for pre-eminent
pre-eminent
/ (prɪˈɛmɪnənt) /
adjective
extremely eminent or distinguished; outstanding
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
pre-eminent
also preeminent, mid-15c., from Medieval Latin preeminentem, from Latin praeeminentem (nominative praeeminens), present participle of praeeminare "to transcend, excel," literally "to project forward, rise above" (see pre-eminence). Related: Pre-eminently; preeminently.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper