Read along with the three podcasts, or open the full dictionary entry for Preparatory for the definition, Arabic meaning, synonyms and example sentences.
Narrator: Today's word is "Preparatory" — adjective, pronounced /prɪˈpærətri/, with the stress on "par".
Narrator: Preparatory means done to prepare for something else.
Narrator: In plain English, preparatory work is getting-ready work.
Narrator: It comes from the Latin praeparare, to make ready beforehand.
Narrator: A common collocation is "preparatory work", which describes early planning tasks.
Narrator: It differs from "preliminary", which can mean first, while preparatory stresses getting ready.
Narrator: A preparatory school, or prep school, is a private school preparing children for secondary school.
Narrator: Education, construction, research and law all rely on the word.
Narrator: So remember: preparatory means getting ready.
Speaker A: What's a prep school?
Speaker B: Short for preparatory school! PREPARATORY comes from the Latin for making ready.
Speaker A: So it prepares children for the next school?
Speaker B: Exactly.
Speaker A: Example sentences?
Speaker B: "Preparatory work begins on Monday", early tasks. "He attended a preparatory school", education. "Read the preparatory notes before class", study.
Speaker A: Common mistakes?
Speaker B: Spell it "-atory", and stress the second syllable in British English.
Speaker A: Close relatives?
Speaker B: Preliminary is its cousin, introductory is its twin, and preparation is the noun, but preparatory keeps its ready-steady charm!
Speaker B: Let's use "preparatory" in AI prompts — useful for course platforms and project planning.
Speaker A: How would courses use it?
Speaker B: Set pre-work.
Prompt: Create a preparatory reading list of five short articles students should read before a first-year economics course.
Speaker A: And project planning?
Speaker B: List early tasks.
Prompt: List the preparatory tasks needed before a kitchen renovation, in order.
Speaker A: Could it help admissions?
Speaker B: Yes, clear info.
Prompt: Write an FAQ for parents about entrance tests at a preparatory school.
Speaker A: One more?
Speaker B: Meetings.
Prompt: Draft preparatory questions attendees should consider before our budget meeting.
Preparatory — meaning in Arabic & definition More P courses GL Dictionary