adjective
Medicine/Medical. of or noting a drug, vaccine, etc., for preventing disease; prophylactic. serving to prevent or hinder: preventive measures. noun
Medicine/Medical. a drug or other substance for preventing disease. a preventive agent or measure.
Also
pre·vent·a·tive [pri-ven-tuh-tiv] /prɪˈvɛn tə tɪv/ (for defs 2, 4).
Origin of preventive
First recorded in
1630–40; prevent +
-iveDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for preventive
Contemporary Examples of preventive
Migraine drugs fall into two categories: preventive and abortive.
Now, preventive protocols—like mammograms, colonoscopies, and Prostate-Specific Antigen tests—are being questioned.
Our current preventive routine focuses on treating such cardiac risk factors as hypertension and cholesterol.
Already, the law has provided 54 million Americans free access to preventive services like check-ups and mammograms.
By that he means solitary confinement is intended to be preventive, not punitive.
Historical Examples of preventive
I regret to say that I have no specific to give as a preventive for sea-sickness.
But the preventive power was what they preferred to exercise.
I understand some fool urged her to try this as a preventive of mal-de-mer.
Unexpected as it may seem, vaccination is not only a preventive of smallpox, but a cure for it.
Similarly, by preventive measures, we are controlling the other diseases.
British Dictionary definitions for preventiveadjective
tending or intended to prevent or hinder
med - tending to prevent disease; prophylactic
- of or relating to the branch of medicine concerned with prolonging life and preventing disease
(in Britain) of, relating to, or belonging to the customs and excise service or the coastguard
noun
something that serves to prevent or hinder
med any drug or agent that tends to prevent or protect against disease
Also (except for sense 3): preventative (prɪˈvɛntətɪv)
Derived Formspreventively, adverbpreventiveness, nounCollins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for preventiveadj.1630s, from Latin praevent-, past participle stem of praevenire (see prevent), + -ive. As a noun, from 1630s; in medical use from 1670s.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
adj.
Preventing or slowing the course of an illness or disease; prophylactic.
n.
A preventive agent or treatment.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
