prep
noun
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prep
1 American
[prep]
/ prɛp /
noun
-
preps
plural
-
a preliminary or warm-up activity or event; trial run.
The race is a good prep for the Kentucky Derby.
-
preparation.
dealer prep on the car included.
-
the act of preparing a patient for a medical or surgical procedure.
adjective
-
preparatory.
a prep school.
-
involving or used for preparation.
the mortuary's prep room.
verb (used with object)
prepped,
prepping
-
to prepare (a person) for a test, debate, etc.
-
to prepare (a patient) for a medical or surgical procedure, as by shaving and washing the skin with an antibacterial soap.
-
to prepare (a vehicle or craft) for sale, use, a test drive, or a race.
-
to prepare (something); make ready.
You can prep the onions and peppers in advance.
verb (used without object)
prepped,
prepping
-
to prepare; get ready.
to prep for the game.
-
to attend a preparatory school.
PrEP
2
American
[prep]
/ prɛp /
noun
Medicine/Medical.
prep.
3
American
abbreviation
-
preparation.
-
preparatory.
-
prepare.
-
preposition.
prep.
1
British
abbreviation
-
preparation
-
preparatory
-
preposition
prep
2
British
/ prɛp /
noun
verb
Usage
What else does prep mean? Preps are people who live a preppy lifestyle, associated with young, rich, usually white men and their stereotypical fashion.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of prep
First recorded in 1860–65; by shortening
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.
See Examples For:
The members of the Strokes knew each other from boarding and prep schools in Europe and New York City before banding together in 1998.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
Common advice to fight it includes “closing” your kitchen after dinner, keeping tempting treats out of the house, and doing meal prep at the start of the week.
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, started at their prep school last week, the paper says.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
The 42-year-old mother of four had arrived at sunrise to prep for a day of virtual and in-person court hearings and free walk-in consultations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
“Well, not really. I mean, it was only a sixteen-point deficit. Also, since when are prep school games in our contracts? I need to talk to my agent about this.”
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
“A lot of the programs and community services and networks that the world relied on to deliver HIV/AIDS treatment and PrEP have been dismantled or abandoned for lack of funding for a year,” Maybarduk says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026
The Housewives convening was organized by MISTR, a major online provider for PrEP, a daily HIV prevention pill.
From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2026
Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, has been used for over a decade to prevent HIV, but its reliance on a daily pill has limited its impact on global infections.
From Barron's ● Dec. 1, 2025
Other factors such as homelessness can make it difficult to take oral PrEP every day.
From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2025
“A major area of concern is coverage of PrEP for HIV,” a preventive drug that was challenged in the Texas lawsuit that came to the Supreme Court.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2025
“There’s no such thing as too much site prep. The more you can prepare an area, the better it’s going to look later on,” he says.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 17, 2023
"I feel good about the prep. I think with all the change going around us, it is making our team focus tighter."
From Fox News ● Dec. 1, 2021
“And it really doesn’t cost a lot to start a prep. I mean, you started with one printer.”
From The Verge ● Nov. 14, 2019
Justin Thomas did some serious Masters prep. . . by playing Frogger:
From Golf Digest ● Apr. 8, 2019
Till, til, prep. to the time of.—adv. to the time when: to the degree that.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various
She preps "summer baskets" which include puzzle books, reading books and snacks to curb any boredom.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
There is a version of yourself who meal preps.
From Salon ● May 5, 2026
The latter told NYT he might need to shop for more orange garb as he preps for the “Jeopardy!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 28, 2026
"The crew just shared a peaceful breakfast with our families and we jump back into training tomorrow to start our preps for a March launch to the Moon."
From Barron's ● Feb. 3, 2026
For the rest of the time, while Saint Sarah preps us with the information the studio people gave her, I keep peeking at Sausun.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
“I’m optimistic,” Hunt said, grinning as he prepped for his next leg.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
"I was literally being prepped to go into surgery when I first found out online that was happening," he said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
"I hadn't prepped for after he was born."
From BBC ● Jun. 14, 2026
The misoprostol-only protocol has some downsides: It can be a bit more unpredictable, since it can take longer for a body to expel a pregnancy if it’s not prepped with mifepristone.
From Slate ● May 18, 2026
While I knock down breakfast and get prepped, I try to think of what I might say.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
The singer’s been back in L.A. from Europe for a few weeks and is busily prepping for her album rollout.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
This isn’t about optimizing every meal, spending three hours prepping identical containers or constructing the sort of Sunday routine that makes you feel behind when you inevitably skip it.
From Salon ● Sep. 22, 2026
"I quickly learned meal prepping and batch cooking was the best way for me," he says.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
They’re responsible for “commons work”—cleaning classrooms, prepping vegetables and checking irrigation systems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Thanks to science class and Ms. Cantor’s obsession with prepping, I know all about purified urine.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
