as in previous
existing at an earlier time; existing before something else
The insurance does not cover preexisting medical conditions. They made changes to the preexisting law.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
as in preceding
to go or come before in time
an advanced Mesoamerican civilization whose apex and collapse preexisted the arrival of Europeans by hundreds of years
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 preexisting
Alora Bopray, USA Today, 6 Jan. 2026
This serum is ideal for anyone looking to target premature and preexisting signs of skin aging.
—Tracy Achonwa, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2025
Like many other large businesses, J.M. Smucker also likely benefits from its scale and resources by using preexisting relationships with retailers to get products into stores across the country.
—Tom Huddleston Jr., CNBC, 11 Nov. 2025
Few people want to watch a topical show that’s not aligned with their preexisting political beliefs.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 18 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for preexisting
Adjective
Cinch also covers unknown preexisting conditions, which many competitors exclude.
—Alora Bopray, USA Today, 6 Jan. 2026
This serum is ideal for anyone looking to target premature and preexisting signs of skin aging.
—Tracy Achonwa, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2025
Like many other large businesses, J.M. Smucker also likely benefits from its scale and resources by using preexisting relationships with retailers to get products into stores across the country.
—Tom Huddleston Jr., CNBC, 11 Nov. 2025
Few people want to watch a topical show that’s not aligned with their preexisting political beliefs.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 18 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for preexisting
Recent Examples of Synonyms for preexisting
Adjective
-
By 2 payouts and previous drawings here.—
USA Today staff,
USA Today,
17 Feb. 2026
-
The Dutch star has twice come second to Stolz at this year’s Games despite breaking the previous Olympic records himself.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
But the South could be set for a strong warming as the weeks preceding summer commence, AccuWeather reported.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Derry Girls, which followed teens in McGee’s native Derry in the years preceding 1998’s Good Friday Agreement, was a raucous, joke-dense show that juxtaposed mundane adolescent rites of passage with the daily horrors of life in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Even when Disney brought back Ortega for their Descendants franchise in 2015 — a film about the children of Disney villains — IP took precedent time and time again above the story.—
CT Jones,
Rolling Stone,
24 Jan. 2026
-
That’s because precedent changes in small but important ways all the time.—
Sonja Sharp,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The initial indictment filed in November accused Clase of rigging pitches in specific games between May 2023 and June 2025.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The model presented was the Changan Nevo A06, also known as the Qiyuan A06, which serves as the initial platform for the new battery technology.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
While neighboring vineyards resorted to grafting their vines onto pest-resistant American roots, DRC used various intensive strategies to keep its original European vines intact, at least until the 1940s.—
Pin Yen Tan 9 min ago,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
-
In 2017, McRae went back to her YouTube roots and uploaded a video of herself singing an original ballad.—
Janelle Ash,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Preexisting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/preexisting. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
