Meaning & use
pre-printed
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Meaning
adjectivebefore a noun
Having words, lines or designs already printed on it before anyone writes or adds anything else.
Grammar: Usually comes before a noun: a pre-printed form, but the form was pre-printed is also possible.
Patterns
- pre-printed with something
The clinic gave me a pre-printed form, so I only had to fill in my name and date of birth.
She bought pre-printed envelopes with the company logo already on the flap.
The pre-printed labels saved the warehouse team hours of handwriting.
Common combinations
- pre-printed form
- Please sign the pre-printed form at the bottom of the page.
- pre-printed label
- Each box arrived with a pre-printed label showing its contents.
- pre-printed envelope
- Return your answers in the pre-printed envelope provided.
- pre-printed card
- The shop sells pre-printed cards with a blank space for your own message.
- pre-printed with
- The tickets were pre-printed with a serial number.
Synonyms and how they differ
- printed
- This is simpler and more general, while pre-printed stresses that the printing exists before you add your own information.
- ready-made
- It describes something prepared in advance in any way, not only by printing.
- blank
- It is nearly the opposite emphasis: a blank form has nothing on it, whereas a pre-printed form has fixed text with spaces to complete.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: pre-printed or pre-paid?
pre-printed vs pre-paid
Pre-paid means paid for in advance, not printed in advance, although a pre-paid envelope can also be pre-printed.
Practice
To save time, the doctor's office handed out ___ forms with the questions already on them.
Choose one answer.
Forms with the questions already on them are pre-printed. Pre-paid refers to payment, which has nothing to do with the text on a form.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pre-printed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.