Prevention

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /pɹɪˈvɛnʃən/

Definitions

1. The act of stopping something from happening or keeping it from occurring in the first place
2. An action or process focused on avoiding the occurrence of an event or condition
3. The practice of intervening early to keep an undesirable situation from developing

Etymology: The Latin root behind "prevention" is "praevenire," literally "to come before," built from "prae" ("before") and "venire" ("to come"). The same verb gave English "event" and "venture" by different routes, so "prevention" is a relative of words that describe things arriving or happening. Its direct line into English runs through Medieval Latin "prēventiō," a noun meaning a coming before, which passed into Middle English as "prevencion." The meaning stayed close to that physical sense of getting ahead of something. Middle English speakers used the word for anticipating or forestalling an event, and the modern sense of stopping a bad outcome before it takes hold grew naturally from that idea of arriving first. The spelling changed over time, with the "-ci-" ending giving way to "-tion."

Synonyms: avoidance, protection, prophylaxis, intervention, deterrence

Antonyms: cause, provocation, instigation, encouragement, promotion