Preordered

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Purchased in advance of a product's release date, with the buyer securing a copy before it becomes generally available
2. Bought ahead of time by a customer who reserves an item before it is officially launched or put on sale
3. Requested and paid for beforehand so that an item is secured before it reaches shops or becomes available to everyone

Etymology: "Preordered" is the past tense and past participle of "preorder," a verb built from the prefix "pre-" meaning "before" and the verb "order." The prefix comes from Latin "prae," which English took through Middle English as "pre-," while "order" traces back through Old French "ordne" and Latin "ordinem," meaning a row, rank, or arrangement, from the Proto-Italic root "ordō." The result is a plain compound: to order something in advance of its availability. The pieces are old, but the combined word is a modern coinage. Its meaning rests on the same sense of arrangement that "order" carries in phrases like "in order," with the prefix adding the idea of timing, so that the goods are arranged and claimed before they exist in the shop or reach the customer.

Synonyms: reserve, pre-book