as in earlier
so as to precede something in order of time
the sick children were examined preliminarily by the nurse to determine if they had a rash
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Recent Examples of preliminarily
Chances of snow and rain are preliminarily expected to remain heading into the weekend, forecasts show.
—
Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald, 16 Feb. 2026
At this point, TCEQ has determined, at least preliminarily, that Coontz and Frederick’s application meets state and federal requirements.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Feb. 2026
The Kendall County Coroner's Office preliminarily identified the two as James Fitzmaurice, 64, and Virgie Fitzmaurice, 62.
—Sara Tenenbaum, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026
Sheriff’s officials said the inmate was preliminarily believed to have died from medical complications and that no foul play was suspected at this time.
—Sacbee.com, 15 Jan. 2026
Further, Bryant said officers had recovered weapons from his home, including one whose ballistics were preliminarily linked to the homicides.
—Samira Asma-Sadeque, PEOPLE, 14 Jan. 2026
She was pronounced dead at the scene, but police preliminarily classified it as a death investigation.
—Rebecca Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026
Shapiro said that preliminarily it is suspected to have been from a gas leak.
—Phil Helsel, NBC news, 23 Dec. 2025
After Mangione was arrested and his backpack was preliminarily searched at McDonald’s by Officer Wasser and Officer Stephen Fox, his belongings were transported to the Altoona police precinct.
—Lorena O’Neil, Rolling Stone, 20 Dec. 2025
Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald, 16 Feb. 2026
At this point, TCEQ has determined, at least preliminarily, that Coontz and Frederick’s application meets state and federal requirements.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Feb. 2026
The Kendall County Coroner's Office preliminarily identified the two as James Fitzmaurice, 64, and Virgie Fitzmaurice, 62.
—Sara Tenenbaum, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026
Sheriff’s officials said the inmate was preliminarily believed to have died from medical complications and that no foul play was suspected at this time.
—Sacbee.com, 15 Jan. 2026
Further, Bryant said officers had recovered weapons from his home, including one whose ballistics were preliminarily linked to the homicides.
—Samira Asma-Sadeque, PEOPLE, 14 Jan. 2026
She was pronounced dead at the scene, but police preliminarily classified it as a death investigation.
—Rebecca Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026
Shapiro said that preliminarily it is suspected to have been from a gas leak.
—Phil Helsel, NBC news, 23 Dec. 2025
After Mangione was arrested and his backpack was preliminarily searched at McDonald’s by Officer Wasser and Officer Stephen Fox, his belongings were transported to the Altoona police precinct.
—Lorena O’Neil, Rolling Stone, 20 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for preliminarily
Adverb
-
Satisfied with medical procedures already in place, NASA ordered no extra checkups for the crew ahead of liftoff and no new diagnostic equipment was packed.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Overwhelm, already a danger to investigators managing a complex case, isn’t helped by online conspiracy theorists and other noisemakers.—
Paige Williams,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
That same year, Bass jumped in about eight months ahead.—
David Zahniser,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
-
And ultimately in February, this is a big month coming ahead for us here and that’s right in front of us.—
Joe Arruda,
Hartford Courant,
5 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
Player leadership – 72 major and minor league members of the executive board – voted unanimously on Wednesday to make Meyer, previously the deputy director and lead labor negotiator, the interim executive director.—
Hannah Keyser,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
-
All opinions expressed by the CNBC Pro contributors are solely their opinions and do not reflect the opinions of CNBC, or its parent company or affiliates, and may have been previously disseminated by them on television, radio, internet or another medium.—
Frank Cappelleri,
CNBC,
18 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
The other half of that spacewalk, Christina Koch, is among the four Artemis II astronauts waiting to fly around the moon as early as March.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Paul Modrowski was 18 years old when prosecutors charged him and a co-defendant with the murder of a friend, Dean Fawcett, whose headless body was discovered months earlier near railroad tracks in Barrington.—
Christy Gutowski,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
History shows that the world has gone to China before, drawn by growth and a belief in endless opportunity, and then rapidly pulled back amid geopolitical tensions and shocks.—
Dewardric L. McNeal,
CNBC,
13 Feb. 2026
-
The day before the killings, Wallace said, Keith Caneiro confronted his older brother about a bank account associated with an irrevocable trust that the younger sibling had established nearly two decades before.—
Tim Stelloh,
NBC news,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Preliminarily.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/preliminarily. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
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