preliminaries
- 1Plural of preliminary.
After the usual preliminaries, the negotiators turned to the central dispute.
The contract's preliminaries set out key definitions before the main terms.
Note
Only the noun can take this -s. Preliminary is also an adjective (preliminary talks), and English adjectives never pluralize. The plural covers all three noun meanings: the introductory business before a main matter, the qualifying rounds that decide the finalists, and the lesser bouts before a boxing headliner. In diplomatic, legal and sporting use it behaves almost as a fixed plural, and the singular turns up far less often.
preliminaries is a form of preliminary
preliminary, noun: An action or step that prepares the way for the main matter; an introduction. Full entry
- Forms
- preliminarypreliminaries plural
- Spelling
- preliminary → preliminaries: change y to i, add -es
Use it in a sentence
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