preengage

English

Etymology

pre- +‎ engage

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌpriː.ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪdʒ

Verb

preengage (third-person singular simple present preengages, present participle preengaging, simple past and past participle preengaged)

1. (transitive) To engage previously.
   • 1676, Abraham Clifford, Methodus Evangelica:

     A deed of gift is when I do freely befow ſomewhat upon another without preengaging so to do

   • 1700, [John] Dryden, “Cymon and Iphigenia, from Boccace”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

     But he was preengaged by former ties.

   • 2017, Daniel Stapleton, The MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite:

     Because the gear pinion of the preengaged motor is both drawn into the ring gear and is spinning at the moment of engagement, over time both the flywheel ring gear and the starter gear pinion wear.

Related terms

• preengagement

References

• “preengage”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.