prequel

American  

[pree-kwuhl] / ˈpri kwəl /

noun

• prequels
  plural

1. a literary, dramatic, or filmic work that prefigures a later work, as by portraying the same characters at a younger age.

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prequel British  

/ ˈpriːkwəl /

noun

1. a film or book about an earlier stage of a story or a character's life, released because the later part of it has already been successful

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• prequels
  plural

Etymology

Origin of prequel

First recorded in 1970–75; pre- + (se)quel

Explanation

A prequel is an installment in a series of books or movies which describes action that occurred in the past, before the original. Monsters University, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace are famous film prequels. The word prequel is most often used for movies, along with sequel, the follow-up to the initial story. Filmmakers sometimes like to fill in background information with a prequel, though fans often complain that prequels don't live up to the original (think of the original Star Wars films and their prequels, for example). The earliest known use of prequel described a 1958 installment of a science fiction story, and the word was common by the 1970s.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prequel prequels

Also in the works is the third “Alien” prequel, which fans have been anticipating since “Alien: Covenant” was released in 2017.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

Tune in to House of the Dragon: After a slog of a second season, HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel is back with a surprisingly enjoyable third season.

From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026

The other contenders for best drama include Keri Russell's political soap opera "The Diplomat," spy series "Slow Horses" and "Game of Thrones" prequel "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms."

From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026

"Elle seems more like a parody than a true prequel," she wrote, adding that the series "has heart and humour, but that's not enough".

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

The Minions try to make a monster movie in the latest ‘Despicable Me’ flick, ‘Legally Blonde’ gets a prequel series, Madonna returns with a new album, and more.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

He added: "It's not up there, yet, with the Harry Potter or Stranger Things prequels but, on balance, the Game of Thrones franchise has yet another worthwhile and lucrative spin-off on its hands."

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

In an exceptional level of productivity, Sheridan received sole writing credit on almost every episode of “Yellowstone,” plus its two prequels “1883” and “1923.”

From MarketWatch ● May 5, 2026

The path these men blazed led to the endless sequels and prequels, remakes and reboots, churned out by the corporate-owned, IP-obsessed studios of the 2020s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 13, 2026

But it’s even rarer that a franchise needs multiple prequels, as is the case with “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping,” a follow-up to 2023’s “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.”

From Salon ● Jan. 4, 2026

“You haven’t seen the prequels or the original trilogy? The podrace? Young Luke? This is a travesty. We have to fix that.”

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed