Etymograph

English

prefigure

Prefigure comes from Latin praefigurare, from figurō ‘to shape, picture’, and ultimately from figūra.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfigūra1‘shape, form, figure’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfigurō2as figurare‘to shape, picture’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraefigurare2
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500prefiguren2
  5. Englishearliest quotation 2005prefigure2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin figuro
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English prefigure
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2005, Leerom Medovoi, Rebels: Youth and the Cold War Origins of Identity: “Quite different is the way in which the tomboy…”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfigūraWiktionary, Latin figuro‘shape, form, figure’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfigurōWiktionary, English prefigureas figurare‘to shape, picture’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraefigurareWiktionary, English prefigure
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500prefigurenWiktionary, English prefigure
  5. Englishearliest quotation 2005prefigureWiktionary, English prefigure. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2005, Leerom Medovoi, Rebels: Youth and the Cold War Origins of Identity: “Quite different is the way in which the tomboy…”

Linked words

through Latin figūra ‘shape, form, figure’

figurine, figural, 3 more

through Latin figurō ‘to shape, picture’

configuration, configure, figuration, 1 more

Today it means

verb To show or suggest ahead of time; to represent beforehand.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “prefigure”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin figuro. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Latin figūra / prefigure

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