prefix

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French prefixer (verb) resp. Late Latin praefixum (noun), both from Latin praefixus, past participle of praefīgō (“I (fix, fasten, set up) in front”, “I fix on the (end, extremity)”) (from prae- (“before”) + fīgō (“I fix”, “I fasten”, “I affix”)).

noun

1. Something placed before another
   1. (grammar, linguistic morphology) A morpheme added to the beginning of a word to modify its meaning, for example as, pre- in prefix, con- in conjure, re- in reheat, etc.
   2. (telecommunications) A set of digits placed before a telephone number, to indicate where the number is based, what type of phone number it is (landline, mobile, toll-free, premium rate etc.)
      in the UK, a number with an 0800 prefix is a toll-free number.
      Add the prefix +34 to dial a Spanish number from abroad
   3. A title added to a person's name, such as Mr. or Dr.
   4. (computing) An initial segment of a string of characters.
      The string "abra" is both a prefix and a suffix of the string "abracadabra".

verb

1. (transitive) To determine beforehand; to set in advance.
   It is important to realize that pregivenness or prefixing is a kind of anteriority that does its work in the present; subjects and meanings in part emerge in enuciative co-constitutive moments. 2002, Thomas R. West, Signs of Struggle, page 23
2. (transitive) To put or fix before, or at the beginning of something; to place at the start.