preventer

American  

[pri-ven-ter] / prɪˈvɛn tər /

noun

preventers plural

1. a person or thing that prevents.

2. Nautical.

   1. any of various lines set up to reinforce or relieve ordinary running or standing rigging.

   2. a line for preventing a sail from jibbing.

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preventer British  

/ prɪˈvɛntə /

noun

1. a person or thing that prevents

2. nautical a rope or other piece of gear rigged to prevent a sail from gybing

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• preventers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of preventer

First recorded in 1580–90; prevent + -er ¹

Example Sentences

A diligent plumber will also calculate the pressure loss from the height of the bathroom above the water meter, the pressure loss through the water meter, a backflow preventer and any other pressure regulators.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 11, 2024

She and Sebastian still have "preventer" medication to reduce the risk of an attack and "reliever" medication in case one happens.

From BBC • Feb. 5, 2022

For much of that summer, many Americans were transfixed by an online “spill cam” that broadcast live images of the crude oil billowing out from the broken blowout preventer.

From Washington Post • Apr. 19, 2020

The blowout preventer was supposed to be the last-ditch defense against high-pressure gas and oil bursting out of the well.

From Slate • Sep. 30, 2016

I have strong suspicions that this circumstance acted as a powerful "preventer stay" to my virtue, and enabled me to put the devil to flight on this trying occasion.

From A Narrative of the Expedition to Dongola and Sennaar Under the Command of His Excellence Ismael Pasha, undertaken by Order of His Highness Mehemmed Ali Pasha, Viceroy of Egypt, By An American In The Service Of The Viceroy by English, George Bethune