"prequel" meaning in English

See prequel in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: /ˈpɹiːkwəl/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Back ache-prequel.wav Forms: prequels [plural]
Rhymes: -iːkwəl Etymology: From pre- (“before”) + quel, by analogy with sequel. Etymology templates: {{af|en|pre-|quel|t1=before}} pre- (“before”) + quel Head templates: {{en-noun}} prequel (plural prequels)
  1. (narratology) In a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor, especially the original narrative or (perhaps improper usage) any narrative work with at least one sequel. Derived forms: prequelise, prequelization, prequelize Related terms: midquel, sequel, interquel, threequel Coordinate_terms: midquel Translations (in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor): preqüela [feminine] (Catalan), 前傳 /前传 (qiánzhuàn) (Chinese Mandarin), antaŭdaŭrigo (Esperanto), esiosa (Finnish), etko-osa (Finnish), préquelle [feminine] (French), antépisode [Canada, masculine] (French), prequel [masculine] (French), precuela [feminine] (Galician), Prequel [neuter] (German), Vorläufer [masculine] (German), Vorgeschichte [feminine] (German), Vorgänger [masculine] (German), prequel [masculine] (Italian), 前編 (zenpen) (alt: ぜんぺん) (Japanese), ретропродолжение (retroprodolženie) [neuter] (Macedonian), prequel [masculine] (Polish), prequela [feminine] (Portuguese), prelúdio [masculine] (Portuguese), prequência [feminine] (Portuguese), при́квел (príkvɛl) [masculine] (Russian), предысто́рия (predystórija) [feminine] (Russian), precuela [feminine] (Spanish), protosecuela [feminine] (Spanish)

Inflected forms

{
  "antonyms": [
    {
      "word": "sequel"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "pre-",
        "3": "quel",
        "t1": "before"
      },
      "expansion": "pre- (“before”) + quel",
      "name": "af"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From pre- (“before”) + quel, by analogy with sequel.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "prequels",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "prequel (plural prequels)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English terms prefixed with pre-",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 2 entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Russian terms with non-redundant manual transliterations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Catalan translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Esperanto translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with French translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Galician translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Italian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Japanese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Macedonian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Mandarin translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Portuguese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Narratology",
          "orig": "en:Narratology",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "coordinate_terms": [
        {
          "word": "midquel"
        }
      ],
      "derived": [
        {
          "word": "prequelise"
        },
        {
          "word": "prequelization"
        },
        {
          "word": "prequelize"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              0,
              9
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "1980, Patrick Robertson, Movie Facts and Feats: A Guinness Record Book, New York: Sterling Publishing, page 43:",
          "text": "'Prequels' are sequels that relate the story that preceded the original film.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "text": "1984, Pauline Kael, The New Yorker\nSet in 1935, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom probably has to be called a pre-sequel, or prequel, to Raiders of the Lost Ark, which was set in 1936, but it isn’t pulpy in the way that Raiders was."
        },
        {
          "text": "2008, 26 February, Andrew Pierce, \"JRR Tolkien's estate to sue Lord of the Rings filmmakers New Line Cinema over profits, in The Daily Telegraph\nThey are also threatening to block the production of the long-awaited prequel, The Hobbit, which may now be cancelled."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "In a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor, especially the original narrative or (perhaps improper usage) any narrative work with at least one sequel."
      ],
      "id": "en-prequel-en-noun-hdVO5zlM",
      "links": [
        [
          "narratology",
          "narratology"
        ],
        [
          "installment",
          "installment"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(narratology) In a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor, especially the original narrative or (perhaps improper usage) any narrative work with at least one sequel."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "midquel"
        },
        {
          "word": "sequel"
        },
        {
          "word": "interquel"
        },
        {
          "word": "threequel"
        }
      ],
      "topics": [
        "human-sciences",
        "linguistics",
        "narratology",
        "sciences"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "ca",
          "lang": "Catalan",
          "lang_code": "ca",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "preqüela"
        },
        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "lang_code": "cmn",
          "roman": "qiánzhuàn",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "word": "前傳 /前传"
        },
        {
          "code": "eo",
          "lang": "Esperanto",
          "lang_code": "eo",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "word": "antaŭdaŭrigo"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "lang_code": "fi",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "word": "esiosa"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "lang_code": "fi",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "word": "etko-osa"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "lang_code": "fr",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "préquelle"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "lang_code": "fr",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "Canada",
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "antépisode"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "lang_code": "fr",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "prequel"
        },
        {
          "code": "gl",
          "lang": "Galician",
          "lang_code": "gl",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "precuela"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "Prequel"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Vorläufer"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "Vorgeschichte"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Vorgänger"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "lang_code": "it",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "prequel"
        },
        {
          "alt": "ぜんぺん",
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "lang_code": "ja",
          "roman": "zenpen",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "word": "前編"
        },
        {
          "code": "mk",
          "lang": "Macedonian",
          "lang_code": "mk",
          "roman": "retroprodolženie",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "ретропродолжение"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "lang_code": "pl",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "prequel"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "lang_code": "pt",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "prequela"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "lang_code": "pt",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "prelúdio"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "lang_code": "pt",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "prequência"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "lang_code": "ru",
          "roman": "príkvɛl",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "при́квел"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "lang_code": "ru",
          "roman": "predystórija",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "предысто́рия"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "precuela"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "protosecuela"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈpɹiːkwəl/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Back ache-prequel.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/6f/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/6f/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav.ogg"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-iːkwəl"
    }
  ],
  "word": "prequel"
}
{
  "antonyms": [
    {
      "word": "sequel"
    }
  ],
  "coordinate_terms": [
    {
      "word": "midquel"
    }
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "prequelise"
    },
    {
      "word": "prequelization"
    },
    {
      "word": "prequelize"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "pre-",
        "3": "quel",
        "t1": "before"
      },
      "expansion": "pre- (“before”) + quel",
      "name": "af"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From pre- (“before”) + quel, by analogy with sequel.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "prequels",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "prequel (plural prequels)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "midquel"
    },
    {
      "word": "sequel"
    },
    {
      "word": "interquel"
    },
    {
      "word": "threequel"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English countable nouns",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English nouns",
        "English terms prefixed with pre-",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Entries with translation boxes",
        "Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations",
        "Pages with 2 entries",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Rhymes:English/iːkwəl",
        "Rhymes:English/iːkwəl/2 syllables",
        "Russian terms with non-redundant manual transliterations",
        "Terms with Catalan translations",
        "Terms with Esperanto translations",
        "Terms with Finnish translations",
        "Terms with French translations",
        "Terms with Galician translations",
        "Terms with German translations",
        "Terms with Italian translations",
        "Terms with Japanese translations",
        "Terms with Macedonian translations",
        "Terms with Mandarin translations",
        "Terms with Polish translations",
        "Terms with Portuguese translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "Terms with Spanish translations",
        "en:Narratology"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              0,
              9
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "1980, Patrick Robertson, Movie Facts and Feats: A Guinness Record Book, New York: Sterling Publishing, page 43:",
          "text": "'Prequels' are sequels that relate the story that preceded the original film.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "text": "1984, Pauline Kael, The New Yorker\nSet in 1935, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom probably has to be called a pre-sequel, or prequel, to Raiders of the Lost Ark, which was set in 1936, but it isn’t pulpy in the way that Raiders was."
        },
        {
          "text": "2008, 26 February, Andrew Pierce, \"JRR Tolkien's estate to sue Lord of the Rings filmmakers New Line Cinema over profits, in The Daily Telegraph\nThey are also threatening to block the production of the long-awaited prequel, The Hobbit, which may now be cancelled."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "In a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor, especially the original narrative or (perhaps improper usage) any narrative work with at least one sequel."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "narratology",
          "narratology"
        ],
        [
          "installment",
          "installment"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(narratology) In a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor, especially the original narrative or (perhaps improper usage) any narrative work with at least one sequel."
      ],
      "topics": [
        "human-sciences",
        "linguistics",
        "narratology",
        "sciences"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈpɹiːkwəl/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Back ache-prequel.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/6f/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/6f/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Back_ache-prequel.wav.ogg"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-iːkwəl"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "ca",
      "lang": "Catalan",
      "lang_code": "ca",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "preqüela"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "lang_code": "cmn",
      "roman": "qiánzhuàn",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "word": "前傳 /前传"
    },
    {
      "code": "eo",
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "lang_code": "eo",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "word": "antaŭdaŭrigo"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "lang_code": "fi",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "word": "esiosa"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "lang_code": "fi",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "word": "etko-osa"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "lang_code": "fr",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "préquelle"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "lang_code": "fr",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "Canada",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "antépisode"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "lang_code": "fr",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "prequel"
    },
    {
      "code": "gl",
      "lang": "Galician",
      "lang_code": "gl",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "precuela"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "Prequel"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Vorläufer"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "Vorgeschichte"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Vorgänger"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "lang_code": "it",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "prequel"
    },
    {
      "alt": "ぜんぺん",
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "lang_code": "ja",
      "roman": "zenpen",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "word": "前編"
    },
    {
      "code": "mk",
      "lang": "Macedonian",
      "lang_code": "mk",
      "roman": "retroprodolženie",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "ретропродолжение"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "lang_code": "pl",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "prequel"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "lang_code": "pt",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "prequela"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "lang_code": "pt",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "prelúdio"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "lang_code": "pt",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "prequência"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "lang_code": "ru",
      "roman": "príkvɛl",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "при́квел"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "lang_code": "ru",
      "roman": "predystórija",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "предысто́рия"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "precuela"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "in a series of works, an installment that is set chronologically before its predecessor",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "protosecuela"
    }
  ],
  "word": "prequel"
}

Download raw JSONL data for prequel meaning in English (8.2kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-06-12 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-06-01 using wiktextract (e79dea5 and 7f4db16). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.