as in requirement
something that must exist or happen before something else can exist or happen
An education is an important precondition for getting a good job. They insist on a guarantee as a precondition to the deal.
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Recent Examples of precondition
Upon the basis of these findings, Congress declares that the constitutional right of citizens to vote is denied or abridged in some areas by the requirement of the payment of a poll tax as a precondition to voting.
—
JSTOR Daily, 17 Oct. 2025
In a recent speech, Kim urged Washington to drop its demand for the North to surrender its nukes as a precondition for resuming diplomacy.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2025
Trump is fully capable of spinning a narrative that would claim one of those preconditions, even while having no resemblance to the truth.
—Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the United States and Western Europe devoted much diplomacy and foreign aid to helping the former USSR and the countries of Eastern Europe develop civil society institutions, believing this to be a precondition of those countries’ transition to democracy.
—Christopher Justin Einolf, The Conversation, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for precondition
JSTOR Daily, 17 Oct. 2025
In a recent speech, Kim urged Washington to drop its demand for the North to surrender its nukes as a precondition for resuming diplomacy.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2025
Trump is fully capable of spinning a narrative that would claim one of those preconditions, even while having no resemblance to the truth.
—Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the United States and Western Europe devoted much diplomacy and foreign aid to helping the former USSR and the countries of Eastern Europe develop civil society institutions, believing this to be a precondition of those countries’ transition to democracy.
—Christopher Justin Einolf, The Conversation, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for precondition
Recent Examples of Synonyms for precondition
Noun
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Interviewing Raheem Morris and Antonio Pierce satisfied the NFL's Rooney Rule requirements for minority or female candidates, and Harbaugh's visit to northern New Jersey paved the way to make a hire before any of the more than half-dozen teams with a vacancy.—
STEPHEN WHYNO,
Arkansas Online,
16 Jan. 2026
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Full experience requirements did not appear to be listed.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Michael Kors Romee Tote Bag This tote has a spacious main compartment that holds all your necessities and then some, like an iPad and smaller laptops.—
Sian Babish,
PEOPLE,
12 Jan. 2026
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For many working households, that means a continuation of the faster-than-CPI-U accumulation that characterized the cost of necessities for the previous two decades.—
Gene Ludwig,
Fortune,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Attorneys and advocates have repeatedly criticized the conditions in ICE’s detention center in Aurora and have protested against plans to open more facilities in parts of rural Colorado.—
Seth Klamann,
Denver Post,
15 Jan. 2026
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Your orchid will essentially drown in these conditions.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
15 Jan. 2026
Noun
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One of the prerequisites of the job is to ask questions, preferably in a manner that the subject can understand them.—
Kevin Sherrington,
Dallas Morning News,
5 Jan. 2026
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Having an elite passer remains a prerequisite for a chance at success in the NFL.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
4 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Precondition.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/precondition. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
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