Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Conceived beforehand: formed ahead of time.
  • verb Simple past tense and past participle of preconceive.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective (of an idea or opinion) formed beforehand; especially without evidence or through prejudice

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Did you go there with kind of preconceived notions of what Yemen might be?

    CNN Transcript Jan 9, 2010 2010

  • It's a handy spelling rule to know and deploy when using words such as "preconceived," for however little that is worth.

    Does the new Dakota Fanning movie violate the federal child pornography law? Ann Althouse 2007

  • So I went to college, with that kind of preconceived notion which didn't materialize.

    Oral History Interview with Eva Clayton, July 18, 1989. Interview C-0084. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007) 1989

  • He won, convincing a jury that the magazine's two top editors (one of whom was the magazine's publisher and sole stockholder) had a clear "preconceived" and "predetermined" agenda to present him as verifiably paranoid and mentally ill.

    The Orange County Register - News Headlines : News By JOSEPH H. COOPER 2010

  • The best discussions happen when you can improvise somewhat, working with whatever the students say -- no matter what they come up with -- to help them learn the material you need to cover (rather than forcing them to follow some kind of preconceived Q&A "script").

    CHE > Latest news 2010

  • He won, convincing a jury that the magazine's two top editors (one of whom was the magazine's publisher and sole stockholder) had a clear "preconceived" and "predetermined" agenda to present him as verifiably paranoid and mentally ill.

    The Orange County Register - News Headlines : News 2010

  • Do you think that kind of preconceived notion of how a female rock musician should behave harms the progress of female musicians in general?

    PopMatters Zach Corsa 2010

  • The best discussions happen when you can improvise somewhat, working with whatever the students say -- no matter what they come up with -- to help them learn the material you need to cover (rather than forcing them to follow some kind of preconceived Q&A "script").

    CHE > Latest news 2010

  • "Without a public forum for this investigation ... the public will distrust it as some kind of preconceived plan by the regulator and the company he is supposed to be overseeing."

    Consumer Watchdog Updates 2010

  • I didn't have any kind of preconceived notions about how these things were supposed to be done.

    unknown title 2009

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