Phrases/words that set your teeth on edge.

[kernelbogey]

'Preorder' = order

'Preheat' = heat

...and so on.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

'Preorder' = order

'Preheat' = heat

...and so on.

etc ad inf

[Bryn]

'Preorder' = order

'Preheat' = heat

...and so on.

Surely 'preorder' = disorder*, and 'preheat' = relatively chilly.

* THe second law of thermodynamics notwithstanding.

[Stanfordian]

Surely 'preorder' = disorder*, and 'preheat' = relatively chilly.

* THe second law of thermodynamics notwithstanding.

Good to go then.

[Pulcinella]

I can just about cope with the 'pre' in preheat: before you do anything else, heat the oven or the pan you're going to do the cooking in. Though even there, heat seems to work just as well.
But the other uses of 'pre' (such as preorder, prebook), meaning little more than 'before the ordering/booking period officially opens', seem a bit of a marketing ploy stretch of the real sense of the prefix to me.

[teamsaint]

Pre ordering, or what that means in practice, whatever you call it, is in many cases worth differentiating from ordering when a product is available.

It is, for example, an age old publishing industry practice, ( usually known as subs or subscriptions) which enable more accurate print runs to be ordered, costs reduced etc.

In the case of Amazon , customers can benefit from ( advance/ whatever you call it) ordering through their price guarantee.

Personally I think "preordering" is an easy way of differentiating these two kinds of orders.

As Pulcers says though, in many cases, the "pre" kind of ordering is a slick marketing ploy. which is how the modern world goes. I imagine such things happen for Glyndebourne and other reputable establishments..........

[Pulcinella]

Pre ordering, or what that means in practice, whatever you call it, is in many cases worth differentiating from ordering when a product is available.

It is, for example, an age old publishing industry practice, ( usually known as subs or subscriptions) which enable more accurate print runs to be ordered, costs reduced etc.

In the case of Amazon , customers can benefit from ( advance/ whatever you call it) ordering through their price guarantee.

Personally I think "preordering" is an easy way of differentiating these two kinds of orders.

As Pulcers says though, in many cases, the "pre" kind of ordering is a slick marketing ploy. which is how the modern world goes. I imagine such things happen for Glyndebourne and other reputable establishments..........

Were they not called advance orders at one stage?
I can certainly understand their use in sorting out print runs.

[Bryn]

'Preorder' = order

'Preheat' = heat

...and so on.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preorder

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-order

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/preheat

http://rdouglasfields.com/2018/12/how-scientific-american-magazine-helps-shape-the-english-language/

[Pulcinella]

I love one of the example sentences in the Oxford link:

‘Finally she managed to explain that whoever had preheated the oven had only set the temperature, and hadn't turned the other dial to on.’

Not much preheating done there, then.

[Pulcinella]

I have just preslit the envelopes of cards that arrived in today's post addressed to my partner for his convenience.

[Serial_Apologist]

I have just preslit the envelopes of cards that arrived in today's post addressed to my partner for his convenience.

Pre-slit looks better though, I would think, otherwise it could be referring to fanzines for Elvis Presley! I always think hyphens help with such prefixes.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I can just about cope with the 'pre' in preheat: before you do anything else, heat the oven or the pan you're going to do the cooking in. Though even there, heat seems to work just as well.

Exactly - "pre-heating" would mean "getting the matches out of the drawer".

Were they not called advance orders at one stage?

Again, exactly. I've presaid this on many occasions.

[Padraig]

I have just preslit the envelopes of cards that arrived in today's post addressed to my partner for his convenience.

Could you have thoughtfully pre-opened the envelopes? It's the taking out of the cards that is the best part. Dammit! I'm predisposed to pre-Christmas tom-foolery.

[Pulcinella]

Could you have thoughtfully pre-opened the envelopes? It's the taking out of the cards that is the best part. Dammit! I'm predisposed to pre-Christmas tom-foolery.

Exactly: that's why I only did the slitting not the opening; I wouldn't deny anyone the pleasure of taking their own card out by pre-removal of the contents on their behalf, or even peeking inside!

[gurnemanz]

What about the pre- in pre-recorded? In the nature of things, recording surely precedes playback.