| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| preemption |
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| SYLLABICATION: | pre·emp·tion |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  pr - mp sh n |
| VARIANT FORMS: | or pre-emp·tion |
| NOUN: | 1a. The right to purchase something before others, especially the right to purchase public land that is granted to one who has settled on that land. b. A purchase made by such a right. 2. Prior seizure of, appropriation of, or claim to something, such as property. | | ETYMOLOGY: | pre– + Latin mpti , mptin-, buying (from mptus, past participle of Latin emere, to buy; see em- in Appendix I).
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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