prepare
Americanverb (used with object)
-
prepares,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prepared,
past participle, past
-
preparing
present participle
-
to put in proper condition or readiness.
to prepare a patient for surgery.
- Antonyms:
- disorganize
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to get (a meal) ready for eating, as by proper assembling, cooking, etc.
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to manufacture, compound, or compose.
to prepare a cough syrup.
- Synonyms:
- make
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Music. to lead up to (a discord, an embellishment, etc.) by some preliminary tone or tones.
verb (used without object)
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prepares,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prepared,
past participle, past
-
preparing
present participle
verb
-
to make ready or suitable in advance for a particular purpose or for some use, event, etc
to prepare a meal
to prepare to go
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to put together using parts or ingredients; compose or construct
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(tr) to equip or outfit, as for an expedition
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(tr) music to soften the impact of (a dissonant note) by the use of preparation
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(foll by an infinitive) to be willing and able (to do something)
I'm not prepared to reveal these figures
Synonym Usage
Prepare, contrive, devise imply planning for and making ready for something expected or thought possible. To prepare is to make ready beforehand for some approaching event, need, and the like: to prepare a room, a speech. Contrive and devise emphasize the exercise of ingenuity and inventiveness. The first word suggests a shrewdness that borders on trickery, but this is absent from devise : to contrive a means of escape; to devise a time-saving method.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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preparesimple
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preparessimple
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have preparedperfect
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has preparedperfect
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am preparingprogressive
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are preparingprogressive
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is preparingprogressive
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have been preparingperfect progressive
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has been preparingperfect progressive
Past
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preparedsimple
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had preparedperfect
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was preparingprogressive
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were preparingprogressive
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had been preparingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of prepare
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin praeparāre “to make ready beforehand,” equivalent to prae- pre- + parāre “to set, get ready” (akin to parent )
Explanation
To prepare means to get ready for something. When you prepare for a test, you'll get a better score than if you don’t. Look at all the variations that you find with prepare. If you prepare yourself mentally for an experience, you sent you mind on it happening. If you're going to tell your family that you're moving out, you might want to prepare them by having them sit down. Are you prepared for their reaction? Are you prepared to defend your decision? You can prepare wood to be painted by cleaning and sanding it. And if you prepare dinner, you cook it.
Vocabulary lists containing prepare
PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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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:
But many schools may struggle to implement the measure because they have had little time to prepare.
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
Instead of hiring an attorney to establish a revocable living trust or prepare a formal will, can I simply name different charitable organizations as beneficiaries on all of my financial accounts?
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
Officials are also worried that children could be drawn into mining activities as schools prepare to reopen in September.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
“We have failed to work through the moral implications of group differences to prepare for the possibility that they will be shown to exist,” he wrote.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
They were easier to prepare than musasa bark, although the twine they provided wasn’t as strong.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
Micron stock slumped Monday as another Chinese memory-chip maker prepares for an IPO.
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
Brad Cooper visited the USS Abraham Lincoln as the aircraft carrier prepares to return home from a nine-month deployment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
Islam Makhachev says he "does not have much time" left in the UFC as the Russian prepares to make the first defence of his welterweight title.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
The resulting difference is considered an indicator of how the body prepares itself to handle the demands and stressors of the coming day.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026
The caption read: Mount Carmel Missionary Circle prepares a bake sale to raise funds for Briggs v.
From "The Parker Inheritance" by Varian Johnson
Paramount has said it will be prepared to move its operations from California to a friendlier state such as Tennessee in October if it can’t reach an accord with California and the other 11 states.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
“The larger buybacks remain small relative to the Treasury market and are officially intended to support liquidity, but traders now know Washington is prepared to respond when the long end becomes sufficiently uncomfortable.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
If you’re not prepared to do this, you shouldn’t be feeding them at all.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026
He added that the US had been prepared to cut some of its tariffs on Canada as part of the deal that fell apart.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
In hindsight she realized she ought to have checked the almanac for the date of the next full moon, so she might be prepared to begin the HEP, as promised.
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
The Justice Department was preparing to wage a legal battle more than a decade in the making against the world’s largest concert promoter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
He was preparing for a second try in the Democratic-leaning 4th District when Amodei unexpectedly announced his retirement in February.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
My financial adviser and I have plans to discuss preparing for this eventuality.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 23, 2026
After years of global headlines and their high-profile move to California, Prince Harry and Meghan are preparing for a return to the UK.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
Pa figured this was the end, and while he was preparing himself, the outhouse dropped straight down and hit the ground like a load of bricks.
From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney
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.
