Word.ws English Dictionary

prefetch

prefetch verb: to load data or instructions in anticipation of their need.

Verb

prefetch (third-person singular simple present prefetches, present participle prefetching, simple past and past participle prefetched)

  1. To load data or instructions in anticipation of their need

Noun

prefetch (plural prefetches)

  1. The operation of loading data or instructions in anticipation of their need.

Forms of prefetch

Verb
third-person singular presentprefetches
present participleprefetching
past participleprefetched
pastprefetched
Noun
pluralprefetches

Origin of prefetch

From pre- + fetch.

Words formed from prefetch

Questions about prefetch

What does prefetch mean?
Prefetch means to load data or instructions in anticipation of their need.
What part of speech is prefetch?
Prefetch can be a verb or a noun.
What is the past tense of prefetch?
The past tense of prefetch is prefetched.

Words near prefetch in the dictionary

  1. prefers
  2. prefertile
  3. prefertility
  4. prefertilization
  5. prefestival
  6. prefetch
  7. prefetchable
  8. prefetched
  9. prefetcher
  10. prefetchers
  11. prefetches

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: prefetch (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.

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Cite this entry: “prefetch.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/prefetch. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.