Synonyms

premeditate

American

[pri-med-i-teyt] / prɪˈmɛd ɪˌteɪt /

verb (used with object)

premeditated, premeditating

to meditate, consider, or plan beforehand.

to premeditate a murder.

premeditate British

/ prɪˈmɛdɪˌteɪt /

verb

to plan or consider (something, such as a violent crime) beforehand

"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

Related Words

See deliberate.

Other Word Forms

premeditatedly adverb
premeditative adjective
premeditator noun

Etymology

Origin of premeditate

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin praemeditātus, past participle of praemeditārī “to contemplate in advance”; pre-, meditate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

To no one’s surprise, the Saudi government had tried to dodge the issue before claiming Khashoggi had been killed by rogue officials, insisting that the slaying and dismemberment was not premeditated.

From Los Angeles Times

Authorities say they believe this suggests the deaths were premeditated.

From BBC

The seven accused from government forces are being prosecuted for "premeditated murder".

From Barron's

He said the act was premeditated and added two days to the requested sentence.

From Los Angeles Times

"You're left with a situation which involves premeditated killing outside of armed conflict, and we refer to that as murder," he said.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023