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precontract

[noun pree-kon-trakt; verb pree-kuh n-trakt, -kon-trakt]
noun
  1. a preexisting contract that legally prevents a person from making another contract of the same nature.
  2. (formerly) such an agreement constituting a legally binding betrothal.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to bind by means of a precontract.
  2. to contract for or agree to do (something) by means of a precontract.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to make a precontract.
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Origin of precontract

1375–1425; late Middle English (noun); see pre-, contract
Related formspre·con·trac·tive, adjectivepre·con·trac·tu·al [pree-kuh n-trak-choo-uh l] /ˌpri kənˈtræk tʃu əl/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for precontract

Historical Examples

  • She alleged a precontract on the part of her husband, Angus, which was never proved.

    Henry VIII.

    A. F. Pollard

  • The ostensible reason for the divorce was a precontract between Anne and Francis of Lorraine.

British Dictionary definitions for precontract

precontract

noun (priːˈkɒntrækt)
  1. a contract or arrangement made beforehand, esp a betrothal
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verb (ˌpriːkənˈtrækt)
  1. to betroth or enter into a betrothal by previous agreement
  2. to make (an agreement, etc) by prior arrangement
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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