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

Sexton, who missed all five preseason games, was a full participant in practice Monday and did not suffer a setback, Redick said. — Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026

What had come off as intuitive during the preseason suddenly looked like a team playing with too much spontaneity on defense, and with not enough on offense. — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2026

And belief isn’t manufactured by marketing departments, slick hype videos or breathless preseason predictions. — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2026

Six weeks into the NFL season, some preseason Super Bowl favorites are already fighting to keep their playoff hopes alive, while a few divisions are making a strong case for being the worst in football. — Andy Scholes, CNN Money, 22 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1914, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for preseason

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