prepared; preparing
1
a
: to make ready beforehand for some purpose, use, or activity
prepare food for dinner
b
: to put in a proper state of mind
is prepared to listen
2
: to work out the details of : plan in advance
preparing a campaign strategy
3
a
: to put together : compound
prepare a prescription
b
: to put into written form
prepare a report
: to get ready
preparing for a career
preparer
noun
Examples of prepare in a Sentence
The teacher prepared the students for the test.
Your room is being prepared now and should be ready soon.
The nurses prepared the patient for surgery.
Farmers are busy preparing the soil for planting.
They'll be arriving soon. We don't have much more time to prepare.
We don't have much more time to prepare ourselves for their arrival.
She tried to prepare herself for bad news.
The sailors are preparing themselves for a long voyage.
The pharmacist prepared the prescription.
Recent Examples on the Web
Participants will learn the basics of Dutch oven cooking and how to prepare various recipes, some that include wild game meat.
—
Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2025
As Misiorowski prepared to pitch, Vaughn marveled at how adrenaline might energize the rookie.
—Andy McCullough, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
Coming prepared with a small, compact first aid kit can prevent a minor issue from turning into a major hassle; these essentials don't take up much room, and having them on hand saves you from scrambling to find a pharmacy in an unfamiliar place.
—Alesandra Dubin, Travel + Leisure, 6 Oct. 2025
An alligator’s head could be seen poking out of the water just a few feet away as Whaley prepared to take his shot, but the 30-year-old quickly brought the ball back onto dry land and escaped with par on the 11th green.
—Reuters, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prepare
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Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2025
As Misiorowski prepared to pitch, Vaughn marveled at how adrenaline might energize the rookie.
—Andy McCullough, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
Coming prepared with a small, compact first aid kit can prevent a minor issue from turning into a major hassle; these essentials don't take up much room, and having them on hand saves you from scrambling to find a pharmacy in an unfamiliar place.
—Alesandra Dubin, Travel + Leisure, 6 Oct. 2025
An alligator’s head could be seen poking out of the water just a few feet away as Whaley prepared to take his shot, but the 30-year-old quickly brought the ball back onto dry land and escaped with par on the 11th green.
—Reuters, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prepare
Cite this Entry
“Prepare.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prepare. Accessed 12 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
prepare
verb
pre·pare
pri-ˈpa(ə)r 
-ˈpe(ə)r
prepared; preparing
1
: to make ready beforehand
prepared us for the news
prepare for a test
2
: to put together the elements of : compound
prepare a prescription
preparer
noun
Medical Definition
prepare
transitive verb
pre·pare
pri-ˈpa(ə)r, -ˈpe(ə)r
prepared; preparing
1
: to make ready beforehand
prepare a patient for surgery
2
: to put together : compound
prepared a vaccine from live virus
prepared the doctor's prescription
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