preclude

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /prɪˈklud/ UK /prɪˈkluːd/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to prevent from happening; to make impossible

The injury did not preclude him from competing.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to prevent from happening;... prevent forestall prohibit bar preempt obviaterule out

Opposites

allow permit enable facilitate

Word family

Derived forms preclusionpreclusive

Related forms exclude include seclude close

Etymology

From Latin praecludere ('to close off, shut out'), from prae- ('before') + claudere ('to shut').

praecludere Latin claudere Latin

View etymology graph ->

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# preclude

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /prɪˈklud/
**IPA (UK):** /prɪˈkluːd/

## Meanings
1. to prevent from happening; to make impossible

## Examples
- The injury did not preclude him from competing.

## Synonyms
- prevent
- forestall
- prohibit
- bar
- preempt
- obviate
- rule out

## Antonyms
- allow
- permit
- enable
- facilitate

## Derived Forms
- preclusion
- preclusive

## Related Forms
- exclude
- include
- seclude
- close

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: praecludere
- Root: claudere

## Etymology
From Latin praecludere ('to close off, shut out'), from prae- ('before') + claudere ('to shut').

## AI Etymology
Preclude comes from Latin praecludere ('to close off, shut out'), from prae- ('before') + claudere ('to shut'). The historical chain includes Latin praecludere and Latin claudere. The quoted older senses, "to close off, shut out", "before", and "to shut", supply the semantic anchors for preclude. The formation is best read as compound and borrowed: the word preclude carries its older form-history into a compact English lexical shape. In present English it is used as a verb, "to prevent from happening; to make impossible". English derivatives include preclusion and preclusive; related English forms include exclude, include, seclude, and close. The result is a verb whose etymology preserves both the older form and the later English specialization.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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preclude

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