preformative
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English
Etymology
From pre- (prefix meaning ‘before; physically in front of’) + formative, modelled after Late Latin praeformativus (originally used in relation to the grammar of Semitic languages).[1]
Noun
preformative (plural preformatives)
- (chiefly in Semitic languages) a formative letter, syllable, etc., at the beginning of a word.
- Synonym: preformant
- 1828, Moses Stuart, A Grammar of the Hebrew Language:
- Ch. a prefix prep. as in Hebrew, the sign of the dative; also of the genitive and accusative; and as a conj. before the future, which then rejects the preformative, that
Coordinate terms
Translations
formative letter, syllable, etc., at the beginning of a word
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Adjective
preformative (not comparable)
- Of or pertaining to preformation.
- Of a thing: forming or affecting something that comes later.
- (grammar, chiefly in Semitic languages) of a letter, syllable, etc.: attached to the beginning of a word as a formative element.
Translations
of or pertaining to preformation
of a thing: forming or affecting something that comes later
of a letter, syllable, etc.: attached to the beginning of a word as a formative element
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References
- ^ “preformative, n. and adj.”, in OED Online
, Oxford: Oxford University Press, March 2007; “preformative, n. and adj.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
