preseason

noun

pre·​sea·​son ˌprē-ˈsē-zᵊn 

ˈprē-ˌsē-zᵊn

plural preseasons

: a period of time immediately preceding a season

tourists who visit during the preseason

especially : a training period preceding a sport's regular season in which teams compete in unofficial games

The preseason starts in two weeks.

performed well in (the) preseason

Quarterback John Friesz was lost for the year in the preseason to knee surgery.

—Paul Zimmerman

Dennis Rodman's mysterious boycott finally ended on Monday when he arrived for practice for the first time since the start of preseason.

—Jack McCallum

preseason adjective

preseason football

preseason training

the preseason opener/finale

preseason rankings/polls

the preseason favorite

Examples of preseason in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Bills hope Bell returns at some point this week, either in Orchard Park, in Cleveland for Thursday’s joint practice, or Saturday’s preseason game against the Browns. — Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026

Our preseason coverage is a springboard to months of coverage that will include game stories, roundups, rankings, features, breaking news and more. — Darren Sabedra, Mercury News, 16 Aug. 2026

In photos obtained by Us Weekly, the football player was seen arriving at Arrowhead Stadium for the Kansas City Chiefs’ first preseason game on August 15. — Meg Walters, InStyle, 16 Aug. 2026

Most other fixtures, as ever in a preseason opener, were in for a smattering of plays. — Kansas City Star, 16 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1914, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for preseason

• milesian
• partizan
• postseason
• unreason
• reason
• season
• seizin
• treason