prepositional (prepozishonal)

[= F. prépositionnel; as preposition + -al. ] Pertaining to or having the nature or function of a preposition: as, the prepositional use of a word. -Prepositional phrase, a phrase consisting of a noun with governing preposition, and having adjectival or adverbial value: as, a house of wood; he spoke with haste. prepositionally (prep-o-zish'on-al-i), adv. In a prepositional manner: as, "concerning" is a participle used prepositionally. prepositive (pre-poz'i-tiv), a. and n. [= F. pré positif = Pg. It. prepositivo, posing the mind to favor; making a favorable impre ion; pleasing; attractive: as, a prepos se ing addre . prepotent pre poster a tet (prē-pos'te-rāt), v. t. [ I never saw thinge done by you which pre poster a ted or perverted the good judgment that all the world esteemeth to shine in you. Palace of Pleasure , II., S. 7. b. ( Nares . ) preposterous (prē-pos'te-rus), a . [= Sp. pre póstero = Pg . It. prepostero , præposter us , with the hinder part before, reversed, inverted, perverted, præ , before, + poster us , coming after: see posterity.] 14. Having that last which ought to be first; reversed in order or arrangement; inverted. Ye haue another manner of disordered speach, when misplace your words or clauses and set that before which should be behind, & è conuerso; we call it, in English prouerbe, the cart before the horse; the Greeks call it Histeron proteron; we name it the Preposterous. Putten ham , Arte of Eng. Poesie, p. 141. How backward! How pre post'rous is the motion Of our ungain devotion! Quarles, Emblems, i. 13. Gold and silver are heavy metals, and sink down in the balance; yet, by a preposterous inversion, they lift the heart of man upwards. Rev. T. Adams , Works, I. 52. 2. Contrary to nature, reason, or common sense; irrational; glaringly absurd; nonsensical. "Good Gloucester" and "good devil" were alike, And both preposterous . Shak., 3 Hen. VI., v. 6. 5. Great precisians of mean conditions and very illiterate, most part by a preposterous zeal, fasting, meditation, melancholy, are brought into those gro errors and inconveniences. Burton , Anat. of Mel., p. 627. If a man cannot see a church, it is preposterous to take his opinion about its altar-piece or painted window. Huxley , Man's Place in Nature, p. 119. 3. Foolish; ridiculous; stupid; absurd. Preposterous a , that never read so far To know the cause why music was ordain'd! Shak., T. of the S., iii. 1. 9. Man is the only preposterous creature alive who pursues the shadow of pleasure without temptation. Goldsmith, Richard Nash. =Syn. 2 and 3. Silly, Foolish, etc. (see absurd ), monstrous, crazy, mad, wild, ludicrous. See foolish. preposterously (prē-pos'te-rus-li), adv. 1. In an inverted order or position; with the hind part foremost; with the bottom upward. He gron'd, tumbl'd to the earth, and stay'd A mightie while preposterously . Chapman , Iliad, v. 2. Irrationally; absurdly; stupidly. The abbot [was] preposterously put to death, with two innocent vertuous monks with him. Letter from Monks of Glastonbury (Bp. Burnet's Records, [II. ii. 365). Wonder and doubt come wrongly into play, Preposterously , at cro purposes. Browning, An Epistle. preposterousne (prē-pos'te-rus-nes), n. The state or character of being preposterous; wrong order or method; unreasonablene ; absurdity. Preposterousne she counted it to wear Her purse upon her back. J. Beaumont, Psyche, xviii. prepo e ing manner; in such a way as to produce a favorable impre ion. prepo e ion (pre-po-zesh'on), n. po e ion.] 1. The act of taking po e ion beforehand; preoccupation; prior po e ion. [ pre- + God hath taken care to anticipate and prevent every man to give piety the prepo e ion , before other competi. tors should be able to pretend to him; and so to engage him in holine first, and then in bli . Hammond , Fundamentals, 2. The state of being prepo e ed; predisposition; prejudice, usually of a favorable nature; hence, liking; favorable opinion. They that were the hearers and spectators of what our Saviour said and did had mighty and inveterate prepos se ions to struggle with. Sharp , Works, I. vi. Such a hovering faith as this, which refuses to settle upon any determination, is absolutely nece ary in a mind that is careful to avoid errors and prepo e ions . Add is on , Spectator, No. 117. When you acknowledge her Merit, and own your Pre po e ion for another, at once, you gratify my fondne , and cure my Jealousy. Steele , Conscious Lovers, ii. 1. So long has general improvement to contend with the force of habit and the pa ion of prepo e ion . I. D'Israeli , Amen. of Lit., I. 148. =Syn. 2. Bias, bent. prepo e or (pre-po-zes'or), n . [ pre- + pos se or.] One who prepo e es; one who po e es before another. They signify only a bare prepo e or , one that po e ed the land before the present po e or. Brady , Glo ary. pre poster (pre-pos'ter), n . Same as prepostor . See prepositor . Intrusting more or le of the discipline to an aristocracy of the scholars themselves, whether under the name of prefects, monitors, or pre posters . Blackwood's Mag . , I. 75. The master mounted into the high desk by the door, and one of the præpostors of the week stood by him on the T. Hughes, Tom Brown at Rugby, i. 5. steps. prepotence (pre-po'tens), n . [OF. prepotence , F. prépotence = Sp. Pg. prepotencia = It. pre potenza , præpotent i a , superior power, præpoten ( t- ) s , very powerful: see prepo tent .] Same as prepotency. Landor.