Predesignation

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Designation made beforehand, naming or choosing someone or something for a role or status before the usual time
2. An earlier appointment or selection settled in advance, fixing a person or thing for a particular purpose
3. The act or fact of having been marked out or chosen ahead of time for a specific function or position

Etymology: "Predesignation" is a plain formation: the prefix "pre-", meaning "before," attached to "designation," the act of naming or appointing someone or something to a role or title. Together they mean the designating or choosing of something in advance, before the formal appointment or naming takes place. The base word carries the older history. "Designation" comes from the Latin "designare," meaning "to mark out" or "to indicate," built from "de-" and "signare," "to mark" (from "signum," a sign). The sense of marking something out gradually widened into naming and appointing, which is the sense that persists in modern usage. The prefix "pre-" comes from Latin "prae," "before," and is one of the most productive prefixes in English, which explains why it can be attached to so many words to create terms like "prearrangement" or "prearrival." "Predesignation" is a compound of this kind, transparent in both its parts and not a term with a separate history of its own.

Synonyms: preselection, prearrangement