preferments

preferments is the plural of preferment.

Meaning of preferment

preferment (countable and uncountable, plural preferments)

(historical) Prior claim (on payment, or on purchasing something); the first rights to obtain a particular payment or product.
(obsolete) The fact of being pushed or advanced to a more favourable situation; furtherance, promotion (of a candidate, action, undertaking etc.).
- But consider—you need not be afraid of delegating power to me. I am no young lady on her preferment. Married women, you know, may be safely authorised.1815, Jane Austen, Emma, volume III, chapter 6
Advancement to a higher position or office; promotion.
A position (especially in the Church of England) that provides profit or prestige.
- One hall called Civil Law Hall or School, flouriſhed about this time (though in its buildings decayed) by the care of the learned and judicious Dr. Will. Warham Principal or Moderator thereof; which he leaving this year (having before had ſeveral Deputies therein) becauſe of his preferment to the...1792, Anthony à Wood, The History and Antiquities of the University of Oxford: In Two Books, volume 1, Oxford: John Gutch, →OCLC, page 661
(archaic) The fact of preferring something; preference.

preferment (plural preferments)

A mixture of flour, water and yeast that is allowed to ferment prior to another baking process.

What is preferments the plural of?: Preferments is the plural of preferment.

Adapted from Wiktionary: preferments (page history and authors); preferment (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

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