preempt

verb

prē-ˈem(p)t How to pronounce preempt (audio)
Definition of preemptnext
as in to seize
to take or make use of under a guise of authority but without actual right the thoughtless teenagers had preempted front-row seats that were reserved for the guests of honor

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of preempt One source of opposition concerned whether the PCSA would preempt state laws that prohibit transgender students from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 11 Aug. 2026 Social conservatives are also concerned that the bill would preempt state laws governing who can play in women’s sports. — Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2026 Declare the rules preempted by the 2018 Farm Bill under the Supremacy Clause. — Mateo Rosiles, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2026 Friday afternoon, White House counsel released a letter to congressional leaders emphasizing that the 'Protect College Sports Act' would not preempt current state laws that prohibit men for competing in women's sports. — Trey Wallace Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for preempt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for preempt
  1. seize
  2. usurp
  3. confiscate
  4. grab
  5. steal
  6. claim
  7. convert
  8. occupy
Verb
  • The Texas high school football season is underway, and several Fort Worth-area teams seized statement wins.
    — Charles Baggarly August 29, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Aug. 2026
  • But while the Jets’ defense piled up takeaways, the rookie quarterback failed to seize the spotlight during the 23-6 loss to the Giants.
    — Antwan Staley, New York Daily News, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of seize
Verb
  • Howie Roseman acquired Bigsby after Week 1, and Bigsby eventually usurped Shipley as Barkley’s top backup.
    — Zach Berman, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026
  • In this way, the tech is being used to elevate human intelligence, rather than usurping it.
    — William Jones, USA Today, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of usurp
Verb
  • After Germany declared war on Russia, Freundlich and his colleagues were captured by the Russian army and their equipment was confiscated.
    — Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Hana reported that plainclothes agents confiscated phones and electronic equipment and that Seyedabdollahi was subsequently held in solitary confinement and at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence detention facility in Isfahan.
    — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of confiscate
Verb
  • Students unlock their pouches, grab their devices and head home.
    — Wakisha Bailey, CBS News, 24 Aug. 2026
  • While looking at the shadows, Crimmins allegedly maneuvered the grapple so that its shadow appeared to grab Lynch’s shadow.
    — Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of grab
Verb
  • In 1950, just before the LSU-Tulane game, Brown said a Tulane student, Norbert James, and his buddy stole LSU’s Mike the Tiger the night before their football game.
    — Maddie Rhodes, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The nectar contains grayanotoxin, a chemical the plant likely evolved to deter insects that steal nectar without pollinating the flower.
    — Prayan Pokharel, The Conversation, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of steal
Verb
  • Miss Manners remembers when banks started claiming to be their clients’ friends.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 25 Aug. 2026
  • And third-party ship-tracking data showed about half the amount Wright claimed.
    — Ramishah Maruf, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of claim
Verb
  • The show lures corporate sponsors to the marketing mecca, where brands hope to convert experience seekers into true believers, eventually disciples.
    — Merlisa Lawrence Corbett, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • After Musk left, OpenAI launched massively successful AI products, namely ChatGPT, struck partnerships with tech titans including Microsoft, converted its business into a for-profit with a non-profit parent, and raised huge sums of funding.
    — Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of convert
Verb
  • Netanyahu’s hard-line government has been accused of turning a blind eye to the settler attacks in the West Bank, which many governments around the world consider illegally occupied.
    — F. Brinley Bruton, NBC news, 29 Aug. 2026
  • But no one has lived in the house since 2010, when it was occupied by architects Sirkka and Robert Damora for about five decades after the Booths.
    — Nora DeLigter, Curbed, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of occupy

Browse Nearby Words

preeminent
preempt
preempted
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Preempt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/preempt. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

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