Preface

How to spell preface

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce preface

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does preface mean?

1. nounAn introductory section at the start of a book or document that explains its purpose or background.
2. verbTo introduce or begin something with preliminary remarks or actions.

Preface in a sentence

• noun

  The author thanked her editor in the preface of the novel.

• verb

  She liked to preface every meeting with a quick summary of the agenda.

• noun

  The preface explained why the second edition had been revised.

• verb

  He would always preface his criticism with a word of praise.

Where does preface come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Preface comes from the Latin praefatio, meaning 'a saying beforehand' or 'a preliminary remark', which was built from praefari, 'to say in advance'. That verb joins prae-, meaning 'before', to fari, meaning 'to speak', the same root that gives us 'fable' and 'fate'. English took the word in the 1300s through Old French preface, where it referred to the introductory words of a book or the opening of the Christian liturgy. Although the ending looks exactly like the everyday word 'face', it has nothing to do with the front of the head; the resemblance is a coincidence of spelling that can trip writers up. Keeping the sense of 'speaking before' in mind helps explain both the noun for an opening passage and the verb for introducing something with preliminary remarks.

How the word is built

• pre- (before)
• -face (from Latin fari: to speak)