preface

[pref-is]

noun

1. 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.

   Antonyms: appendix

2. an introductory part, as of a speech.

   Synonyms: prologue, preamble
   Antonyms: epilogue

3. something preliminary or introductory.

   The meeting was the preface to an alliance.

   Synonyms: prologue, preamble
   Antonyms: epilogue

4. Ecclesiastical.,  a prayer of thanksgiving, the introduction to the canon of the Mass, ending with the Sanctus.

verb (used with object)

prefaced, prefacing 

1. to provide with or introduce by a preface.

2. to serve as a preface to.

preface

/ ˈprɛfɪs /

noun

1. a statement written as an introduction to a literary or other work, typically explaining its scope, intention, method, etc; foreword

2. anything introductory

3. RC Church a prayer of thanksgiving and exhortation serving as an introduction to the canon of the Mass

verb

1. to furnish with a preface

2. to serve as a preface to

Other Word Forms

• prefacer noun
• unprefaced adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of preface¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin prēfātia, for Latin praefātiō “a saying beforehand,” equivalent to praefāt(us) (past participle of praefārī “to say beforehand”; pre-, fate ) + -iōn- -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of preface¹

C14: from Medieval Latin praefātia, from Latin praefātiō a saying beforehand, from praefārī to utter in advance, from prae before + fārī to say

Synonym Study

See introduction.

Example Sentences

In a preface, the film director Guillermo del Toro likens this collection to early modern cabinets of curiosities, whose juxtapositions of natural and artificial objects were meant to expose a hidden order of existence.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Elsewhere, pro-Palestinian demonstrations prefaced Italy's vital win over Israel and Spain took another step towards qualification with a big victory against Bulgaria.

Read more on Barron's

It’s not my habit to preface my columns with “trigger alerts,” so this is a first:

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“It is music for the people who play the piece and for the people who hear it,” he wrote in a preface to the concert.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But this exhibitionistic Oedipus is the star of the show’s unnecessary preface, a belabored warmup act that should have been cut in rehearsals.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• foreword 
• preamble 
• prologue