pre-emptive
|pre-empt-ive|
/priːˈɛmptɪv/
act beforehand to prevent
Etymology
'pre-emptive' originates from Latin elements 'prae-' (before) and 'emere' (to buy or take). The English adjective derives from the verb 'pre-empt' ('pre' + 'empt' from Latin 'emere').
'pre-emptive' developed from the verb 'pre-empt' (also written 'preempt'), which came into English via Late Latin/Old French forms related to 'praeempt-', from Latin 'prae-emptus' (something taken beforehand). The adjectival suffix '-ive' was then added in English to form 'pre-emptive'.
Initially tied to the literal sense of 'buying or taking beforehand' (from Latin roots meaning 'before' + 'take'), it extended by metaphor to mean 'taking action beforehand to prevent or forestall' and later acquired specialized uses (e.g., military, computing).
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
intended to prevent something from happening by taking action beforehand; done in advance to forestall or avert an anticipated event.
They took pre-emptive measures to secure the files before anyone could remove them.
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Adjective 2
relating to an action taken to forestall or nullify an opponent's expected action (often used in military or political contexts, e.g., a pre-emptive strike).
The government authorized a pre-emptive strike against the supply lines to prevent an imminent attack.
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Adjective 3
in computing, describing a system or scheduler that can interrupt and suspend tasks in order to allocate resources (opposite of non-preemptive).
Modern operating systems use pre-emptive multitasking to ensure responsive performance.
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Last updated: 2025/12/24 20:52