prefiguration
|pre-fig-u-ra-tion|
🇺🇸
/ˌpriːfɪɡjəˈreɪʃən/
🇬🇧
/ˌpriːfɪɡjʊˈreɪʃ(ə)n/
to shape or show beforehand; foreshadow
Etymology
'prefiguration' originates from Latin, specifically the Medieval Latin word 'praefiguratio', where 'prae-' meant 'before' and 'figurare/figura' meant 'shape, form'.
'prefiguration' changed from Medieval Latin 'praefiguratio' and Old French forms (e.g. 'prefiguracion'), and eventually entered Middle English as 'prefiguracioun' before becoming the modern English 'prefiguration'.
Initially, it meant 'the act of forming or representing beforehand', but over time it evolved to commonly mean 'a foreshadowing or anticipatory likeness' and acquired a specific technical sense in theology as a 'type' that prefigures a later reality.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
an act or instance of representing or indicating something in advance; foreshadowing or anticipation of a later event or form.
The early sketches were a prefiguration of the final design.
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Antonyms
Noun 2
a thing or person that foreshadows or symbolizes a later event or person; (especially in theology) a type or foreshadowing of a later reality.
In some readings of the text, the old covenant is seen as a prefiguration of the new.
Synonyms
Noun 3
the act or process of prefiguring; the portrayal or shaping of something in an early form.
The legislation can be read as a prefiguration of later reforms.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/10/06 14:34