prevent

verb

pre·​vent pri-ˈvent 

prevented; preventing; prevents

transitive verb

1

: to keep from happening or existing

steps to prevent war

2

: to hold or keep back : hinder, stop

—often used with from

3

: to deprive of power or hope of acting or succeeding

4

archaic

a

: to be in readiness for (something, such as an occasion)

b

: to meet or satisfy in advance

c

: to act ahead of

d

: to go or arrive before

intransitive verb

: to interpose an obstacle

preventability

pri-ˌven-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

preventable adjective

or less commonly preventible

pri-ˈven-tə-bəl 

preventer noun

Synonyms

• avert
• forestall
• head off
• help
• obviate
• preclude
• stave off

Choose the Right Synonym for prevent

prevent, anticipate, forestall mean to deal with beforehand.

prevent implies taking advance measures against something possible or probable.

measures taken to prevent leaks

anticipate may imply merely getting ahead of another by being a precursor or forerunner or it may imply checking another's intention by acting first.

anticipated the question by making a statement

forestall implies a getting ahead so as to stop or interrupt something in its course.

hoped to forestall the sale

Examples of prevent in a Sentence

Seatbelts in cars often prevent serious injuries.

Can exercise and a healthy diet prevent heart disease?

The accident could have been prevented.

He grabbed my arm to prevent me from falling.

Bad weather prevented us from leaving.

How are you going to prevent him from finding out about the party?

Recent Examples on the Web

Once Trump withdraws America’s aegis over these allies, what is to prevent old hostilities from resurfacing, from enmities between Germany and France or Germany and Poland to lingering resentments between the Japanese and Koreans? —Andreas Kluth, The Mercury News, 15 Nov. 2024

In the current proposal for land possession there, private land prevents the Crow from visiting many of these sites without permission from the landowner. —Ryleigh Nucilli, Outside Online, 14 Nov. 2024

As Assad’s government teetered on the brink of collapse, Hezbollah stepped in decisively to safeguard the regime and prevent the emergence of a new regime in Damascus that would be hostile to the axis. —Renad Mansour, Foreign Affairs, 13 Nov. 2024

But much of its route runs along East Washington, an arterial managed by Wisconsin, and the state transportation department prevented Madison from making the entire BRT lane bus-only during rush hour. —David Zipper, Vox, 13 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, to anticipate, from Latin praeventus, past participle of praevenire to come before, anticipate, forestall, from prae- + venire to come — more at come

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4c

Kids Definition

prevent

verb

pre·​vent pri-ˈvent 

1

: to keep from happening

prevent accidents

2

: to hold or keep back : hinder, stop

bad weather prevented us from leaving

preventable adjective

also preventible

-ə-bəl