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The time before written records in any area of the world; the events and conditions of those times.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: prehistoric age
Antonyms: none provided
The study of those times.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Any past time (even recent) treated as such a distant, unknowable era.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, excessive, humorous, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
The history leading up to some event, condition, etc.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, often, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
the time during the development of human culture before the appearance of the written word
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: prehistoric culture
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: time period, period of time, period
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per- Proto-Indo-European *preh2- Proto-Indo-European *-i Proto-Indo-European *préh2i? Proto-Italic *prai Proto-Italic *prai- Latin prae-lbor. Middle English pre- English pre- Proto-Indo-European *weyd- Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Indo-European *wéydtōr Proto-Hellenic *wístōr Ancient Greek ἵστωρ (hístōr) Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *-eyéti Proto-Indo-European *-esyéti Proto-Indo-European *-éh1ti Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éh1yeti Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Ancient Greek -έω (-éō) Ancient Greek ῐ̔στορέω (hĭstoréō) Proto-Indo-European *-h2 Proto-Indo-European *-éh2 Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh2 Proto-Hellenic *-íā Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā) Ancient Greek ἱστορία (historía)bor. Latin historiader. Old French estoire Old French estorie Old French historiebor. Middle English historie English history English prehistory From pre- (“before”) + history, first attested in the Foreign Quarterly Review in 1836, after the model of prehistoric, from French préhistorique.
Across languages
Translations
98 source translations are retained for this English entry.
-
Albanian:
parahistori
— era before written records
-
Arabic:
عَصْر مَا قَبْلَ التَّارِيخ
(ʕaṣr mā qabla t-tārīḵ)
— era before written records
-
Belarusian:
прагісто́рыя
(prahistóryja)
— era before written records
-
Bengali:
প্রাগিতিহাস
(pragitihaś)
— era before written records
-
Bulgarian:
праисто́рия
(praistórija)
— era before written records
-
Burmese:
သမိုင်းမတိုင်မီခေတ်
(sa.muing:ma.tuingmihket)
— era before written records
-
Catalan:
prehistòria
— era before written records
-
Chinese Mandarin:
史前
(shǐqián)
— era before written records
-
Chinese Mandarin:
史前時代 /史前时代
(shǐqián shídài)
— era before written records
-
Czech:
pravěk
— era before written records
-
Finnish:
esihistoriallinen aika
— era before written records
-
French:
préhistoire
— era before written records
-
Galician:
prehistoria
— era before written records
-
Georgian:
პრეისტორია
(ṗreisṭoria)
— era before written records
-
Georgian:
წინარეისტორია
(c̣inareisṭoria)
— era before written records
-
German:
Vorzeit
— era before written records
-
German:
Urgeschichte
— era before written records
-
Hebrew:
פרהיסטוריה
— era before written records
-
Hindi:
प्रागितिहास
(prāgitihās)
— era before written records
-
Indonesian:
prasejarah
— era before written records
-
Indonesian:
prehistori
— era before written records
-
Irish:
réamhstair
— era before written records
-
Italian:
preistoria
— era before written records
-
Japanese:
先史時代
(senshi jidai)
— era before written records
-
Korean:
선사 시대
(seonsa sidae)
— era before written records
-
Macedonian:
праисторија
(praistorija)
— era before written records
-
Polish:
prehistoria
— era before written records
-
Portuguese:
pré-história
— era before written records
-
Romanian:
preistorie
— era before written records
-
Russian:
доистори́ческий пери́од
(doistoríčeskij períod)
— era before written records
-
Russian:
праисто́рия
(praistórija)
— era before written records
-
Russian:
преисто́рия
(preistórija)
— era before written records
-
Russian:
доисто́рия
(doistórija)
— era before written records
-
Slovak:
pravek
— era before written records
-
Slovene:
prazgodovina
— era before written records
-
Turkish:
prehistorya
— era before written records
-
Turkish:
tarih öncesi
— era before written records
-
Ukrainian:
преісто́рія
(preistórija)
— era before written records
-
Ukrainian:
доісто́рія
(doistórija)
— era before written records
-
Vietnamese:
tiền sử
— era before written records
-
Armenian:
նախապատմություն
(naxapatmutʻyun)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Asturian:
prehistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Catalan:
prehistòria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Chinese Mandarin:
史前史
(shǐqiánshǐ)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Czech:
pravěk
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Danish:
forhistorie
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Dutch:
prehistorie
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Esperanto:
prahistorio
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Finnish:
esihistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
French:
préhistoire
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Galician:
prehistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Georgian:
პრეისტორია
(ṗreisṭoria)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Georgian:
წინარეისტორია
(c̣inareisṭoria)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
German:
Vorgeschichte
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
German:
Urgeschichte
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Italian:
preistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Japanese:
先史学
(senshigaku)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Korean:
선사학
(seonsahak)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Northern Kurdish:
pêşdîrok
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Macedonian:
праисторија
(praistorija)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Malay:
prasejarah
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Malay:
ڤراسجاره
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Norman:
préhistouaithe
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Norwegian Bokmål:
forhistorie
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Norwegian Nynorsk:
forhistorie
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Polish:
prehistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Portuguese:
pré-história
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Russian:
праисто́рия
(praistórija)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Russian:
преисто́рия
(preistórija)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Russian:
доисто́рия
(doistórija)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Serbo-Croatian:
prethistorija
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Serbo-Croatian:
prahistorija
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Serbo-Croatian:
pretpovijest
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Serbo-Croatian:
prapovijest
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Serbo-Croatian:
prehistorija
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Slovak:
pravek
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Slovene:
prazgodovina
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Spanish:
prehistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Swedish:
förhistoria
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Turkish:
prehistorya
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Turkish:
tarih öncesi
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Ukrainian:
передісто́рія
(peredistórija)
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Vietnamese:
thời tiền sử
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Volapük:
rujenav
— study of events and conditions before written records
-
Armenian:
նախապատմություն
(naxapatmutʻyun)
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Belarusian:
перадгісто́рыя
(pjeradhistóryja)
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Chinese Mandarin:
發展背景 /发展背景
(fāzhǎn bèijǐng)
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Danish:
forhistorie
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Finnish:
historia
— history of events leaving up to something
-
French:
préhistoire
— history of events leaving up to something
-
German:
Vorgeschichte
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Japanese:
前史
(zenshi)
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Korean:
전사
(jeonsa)
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Norwegian Bokmål:
forhistorie
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Norwegian Nynorsk:
forhistorie
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Polish:
prehistoria
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Russian:
предысто́рия
(predystórija)
— history of events leaving up to something
-
Ukrainian:
передісто́рія
(peredistórija)
— history of events leaving up to something
