prelude

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“
This prelude is the poem of Endymion_, to which the Quarterly reviewer alone (according to Shelley) was insensitive, owing to feelings of 'envy, hate, and wrong.'

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Definitions (24)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (8)

  1. noun An introductory performance, event, or action preceding a more important one; a preliminary or preface.
  2. noun Music A piece or movement that serves as an introduction to another section or composition and establishes the key, such as one that precedes a fugue, opens a suite, or precedes a church service.
  3. noun Music A similar but independent composition for the piano.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (9)

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Examples (50)

  • Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, besides being awesome, strikes me as an example of the intent of what White Wolf calls a prelude. —  UncleBear
  • Without further prelude, therefore, we'll dive right in and take a look at ... —  Fool.com: The Motley Fool
  • Dresden version of the prelude was used for this new production, which opened Feb. 23 and runs through March 12. —  WTOP / Business / Biz Stories
  • As a solemn unfolding of the main leitmotivs of this music-drama, the prelude is more rhetoric than entertainment, but it permits an orchestra to demonstrate a range of colorings, from delicate woodwind or string pastels to bold brass impasto.
  • With this as a prelude, let me get into my subject - how to repair housing in America. —  Financial Sector and Stocks Analysis from Seeking Alpha
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This word has been looked up 111 times.

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

interlude ·  prologue ·  symphony ·  colouring ·  overture ·  accompaniment ·  peroration ·  duet ·  preface ·  aria ·  climax ·  concerto
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (3)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Medieval Latin praelūdium, from Latin praelūdere, to play beforehand : prae-, pre- + lūdere, to play; see leid- in Indo-European roots.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. from Old French preluder, French préluder = Italian preludere, prelude (in music) (cf. Spanish Portuguese preludiar, prelude (in music); from the noun), from Latin præludere, play beforehand by way of practice or rehearsal, sing beforehand, premise, preface, from præ, before, + ludere, play: see ludicrous. Cf. allude, collude, elude, illude. The English verb is in part from the noun: see prelude, n.
  2. Formerly also preludium (from Middle Latin); from Old French prelude, French prélude = Spanish Portuguese Italian preludio, from Middle Latin *præludium, a playing or performing beforehand, from Latin præludere, play beforehand by way of practice or trial, premise, preface: see prelude, v.
 

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/ˈpriljud/
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