preadaptation

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noun

An adaptation that evolved in an ancestral population, in which it served a different function

OriginEnglish adaptation ← French adaptation ← Medieval Latin adaptātiō →
Scrabble 18
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Meanings

nounpreadaptation (countable and uncountable, plural preadaptations)

plural preadaptations

  1. countableuncountablebiologyAn adaptation that evolved in an ancestral population, in which it served a different function

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*per-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*preh₂-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*préh₂i?
  4. Proto-Italic*prai
  5. Proto-Italic*prai-
  6. Latinprae-
  7. Middle Englishpre-
  8. Englishpre-
  9. Medieval Latinadaptātiō
  10. Frenchadaptation
  11. Englishadaptation
  12. Englishpreadaptation

From pre- + adaptation.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

preadaptation. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/preadaptation

MLA

“preadaptation.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/preadaptation. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “preadaptation,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/preadaptation.

Source: preadaptation on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.