'pre-anesthesia' originates from the prefix 'pre-' meaning 'before' and 'anesthesia' from Greek 'anaisthēsia,' where 'an-' meant 'without' and 'aisthēsis' meant 'sensation.'

'anaisthēsia' transformed into the modern English word 'anesthesia,' and the prefix 'pre-' was added to denote the period before anesthesia.

Initially, it meant 'before sensation loss,' and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.