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

After a very strong showing at training camp, Pierre-Olivier Joseph has been somewhat uneven in his preseason appearances. —Thomas Drance, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2025

Despite entering the year as a preseason national title favorite, Clemson is 1-3 , suffering losses to LSU, Georgia Tech and Syracuse. —Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025

Smith saw some action during the preseason, but then was subsequently placed on the reserve/non-football illness list for some unknown reason after the roster cutdown day. —Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025

Both played in one preseason game for the Sharks. —Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 30 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1914, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for preseason

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