Definition

1. Verb:
   • To inform or make someone aware of something in advance: "preacquaint" means to give someone prior knowledge or information about a person, event, or situation before it occurs or is encountered.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • The teacher preacquainted the students with the new syllabus before the semester began. (The teacher informed the students about the syllabus in advance.)
  • I was preacquainted with the rules of the game by my friend before we started playing. (My friend told me the rules beforehand.)

Advanced Usage

• "to be preacquainted with": to have been given prior knowledge or familiarity with something.

  • She was preacquainted with the city's layout from reading travel guides. (She had learned about the city's layout in advance.)

• "to preacquaint oneself": to deliberately seek advance information about something.

  • He preacquainted himself with the company's policies before the interview. (He learned the policies beforehand.)

Variants and Related Words

• Preacquaintance (n): the state or act of being informed in advance.

  • His preacquaintance with the subject made the lecture easy to follow. (His prior knowledge helped him understand.)

• Preacquainted (adj): having been informed or made familiar with something beforehand.

  • The team was preacquainted with the new software before the update. (They knew about it in advance.)

Synonyms

• Forewarn: to warn someone of something before it happens.
• Preinform: to give information in advance.
• Brief: to give someone essential information beforehand.

Related Idioms

• "Give someone the heads-up": to provide advance warning or information.
  • My colleague gave me a heads-up about the meeting changes. (She informed me beforehand.)
• "Put someone in the picture": to provide someone with necessary background information.
  • The manager put the new hire in the picture about office procedures. (She preacquainted him with the procedures.)

Phrasal Verbs

• Fill in: to provide someone with necessary information.
  • Please fill me in on what happened while I was away. (Preacquaint me with recent events.)
• Clue in: to give someone important information.
  • She clued me in on the secret plan. (She preacquainted me with the plan.)