Prefer
[prɪ'fɜː] or [prɪ'fɝ]
Definition
(verb.) like better; value more highly; 'Some people prefer camping to staying in hotels'; 'We prefer sleeping outside'.
(verb.) promote over another; 'he favors his second daughter'.
(verb.) give preference to one creditor over another.
Checked by Calvin--From WordNet
Definition
(v. t.) To carry or bring (something) forward, or before one; hence, to bring for consideration, acceptance, judgment, etc.; to offer; to present; to proffer; to address; -- said especially of a request, prayer, petition, claim, charge, etc.
(v. t.) To go before, or be before, in estimation; to outrank; to surpass.
(v. t.) To cause to go before; hence, to advance before others, as to an office or dignity; to raise; to exalt; to promote; as, to prefer an officer to the rank of general.
(v. t.) To set above or before something else in estimation, favor, or liking; to regard or honor before another; to hold in greater favor; to choose rather; -- often followed by to, before, or above.
Checker: Patrice
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. [1]. Offer, present, address, bring forward, set forth.[2]. Raise, exalt, promote, advance.[3]. Choose, select, elect, pick, pick out, single out, fix upon, pitch upon.
Typed by Carolyn
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Choose, elect, select, fancy, promote, advance, further
ANT:Reject, postpone, defer, withhold, degrade, depress
Inputed by Estella
Definition
v.t. to esteem above another: to regard or hold in higher estimation: to choose or select before others: to promote: to exalt: to offer or present as a request: to bring forward for consideration: to place in advance:—pr.p. prefer′ring; pa.t. and pa.p. preferred′.—ns. Preferabil′ity Pref′erableness.—adj. Pref′erable worthy to be preferred or chosen: more desirable or excellent: of better quality.—adv. Pref′erably by choice: in preference.—n. Pref′erence the act of preferring: estimation above another: the state of being preferred: that which is preferred: choice.—adj. Preferential (pref-ėr-en′shal) having a preference.—adv. Preferen′tially.—ns. Prefer′ment the act of preferring: the state of being preferred or advanced: advancement to a higher position: promotion: superior place esp. in the church; Prefer′rer one who prefers.—Preference shares or stock shares or stock on which the dividends must be paid before those on other kinds.
Editor: Rosanne
Examples
- I prefer unlucky things. D. H. Lawrence. Women in Love .
- If I must disgrace myself by such a bargain with any man, I prefer that it be one I already despise. Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
- I ask for information; I ask YOUR daughter; I prefer to speak to her. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- Some prefer a preparation in the form of a paste, as follows: =Cherry Tooth Paste. William K. David. Secrets of Wise Men, Chemists and Great Physicians.
- Even at this day the ignorant denizens of the neighboring country prefer not to sleep in it. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- Nothing could be more natural and proper than for my Professor to open a school, and for me to prefer to reside in my own estate. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- I prefer trying to report Mr. Franklin's discoveries, as nearly as may be, in Mr. Franklin's own words. Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone.
- I advanced; then paused by the crib side: my hand was on the curtain, but I preferred speaking before I withdrew it. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- I am going to be a favourite: preferred before papa soon, I daresay. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- We can give Mr. Copperfield seventy-two, sir, if it would be preferred. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
- I should have preferred writing my report, instead of communicating it by word of mouth. Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone.
- I have little doubt he would have preferred such an employment in his heart to all others. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
- Now that he had reached a cooler moment he would have preferred a less hasty marriage; but the card was laid, and he determined to abide by the game. Thomas Hardy. The Return of the Native.
- There was a seat for Mr. Peggotty too, but he preferred to stand, leaning his hand on the small rustic table. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
- He had been to the Opera, and knew the merits of the principal actors, preferring Mr. Kean to Mr. Kemble. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- I shall be too busy for whist; I shall have two parishes, said the Vicar, preferring not to discuss the virtues of that game. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
- Once, upon his preferring such an accusation, I turned upon him--I rose against him. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- It was not a fashionable place, but even among the pleasant people there, the girls made few friends, preferring to live for one another. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- For the present Lord Steyne lives at Naples, preferring the view of the Bay and Capri and Vesuvius to the dreary aspect of the wall in Gaunt Square. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- Several hundred refused to sign their paroles, preferring to be sent to the North as prisoners to being sent back to fight again. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- It is painful and difficult to decide when we find two claimants thus directly in opposition to each other, and mutually preferring charges of falsehood and fraud. Frederick C. Bakewell. Great Facts.
- They say he will eat any thing he can get between meals, but he prefers oakum. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- Your mamma prefers other accomplishments, I fancy. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- It prefers the rule of its fri ends to the rule of a despot. Walter Libby. An Introduction to the History of Science.
- He prefers to take as few people as possible into his confidence. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
- They give one a lemon to squeeze into it, or iced milk, if he prefers it. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- He prefers a mixture of forms of government to any single one. Plato. The Republic.
- Prefers carriage exercise. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
Edited by Griffith