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Preventive vs Preempt - What's the difference?

preventive | preempt |

As an adjective preventive

is .

As a verb preempt is

(nonstandard).

preventive

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Preventing, hindering, or acting as an obstacle to.
  • Carried out to deter military aggression.
  • Slowing the development of an illness; prophylactic.
  • * Sir Thomas Browne
  • Physic is either curative or preventive .
  • (obsolete) Going before; preceding.
  • * Cudworth
  • Any previous counsel or preventive understanding.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (dated) A thing that prevents, hinders, or acts as an obstacle to.
  • * 1856 , Henry William Herbert, The Complete Manual for Young Sportsmen
  • Dogs should be warmly but airily housed; heartily, but not heatingly, fed — old Indian meal, mixed with oatmeal, suppawn, is the best general food, with a small quantity of salt, which is a preventive against worms
  • (nonstandard) A thing that slows the development of an illness.
  • A contraceptive, especially a condom.
  • Alternative forms

    * preventative

    Usage notes

    * Many speakers prefer to use preventive'' in adjective senses and ''preventative in noun senses.[http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/nonerrors.html
  • preventive]
  • ----

    preempt

    English

    Alternative forms

    * pre-empt *

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • to appropriate something (before someone else does)
  • to displace something, or take precedence over something
  • (bridge) to make a preemptive bid at bridge
  • Derived terms

    * preemptive * preemptor * preemptory