preview
Americannoun
-
an earlier or previous view.
-
an advance showing of a motion picture, play, etc., before its public opening.
-
an advance showing of brief scenes in a motion picture, television show, etc., for purposes of advertisement.
-
anything that gives an advance idea or impression of something to come.
verb (used with object)
noun
-
an advance or preliminary view or sight
-
an advance showing before public presentation of a film, art exhibition, etc, usually before an invited audience of celebrities and journalists
-
a public performance of a play before the official first night
verb
Other Word Forms
- unpreviewed adjective
Etymology
Origin of preview
First recorded in 1600–10; 1920–25 preview for def. 2; pre- + view
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.
The company has said it has dozens of commercial agreements but only began offering select enterprise customers a preview last fall with a wider rollout targeted for this year.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026
And their efforts could be providing a preview of what comes next, when AI agents drive more workflows on top of that software.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026
“Dune” stars Zendaya and Javier Bardem joined Denis Villeneuve to preview the trailer for the conclusion to his famed sci-fi trilogy.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026
Read a preview of AeroVironment’s earnings report below.
From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026
He stepped back from me and said, “Aren’t you here for the preview? You do have an invitation, don’t you?”
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
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.
