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prevent: Meaning and Definition of
pre•vent
Pronunciation: (pri-vent'), [key] — v.t.
- to keep from occurring; avert; hinder: He intervened to prevent bloodshed.
- to hinder or stop from doing something: There is nothing to prevent us from going.
- to act ahead of; forestall.
- to precede.
- to anticipate.
—v.i. - to interpose a hindrance: He will come if nothing prevents.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.