Word.ws English Dictionary

prescribed

Syllables: pre·scribed/pɹəˈskɹaɪbd/

prescribed is the simple past and past participle of prescribe.

Meaning of prescribe

Verb

prescribe (third-person singular simple present prescribes, present participle prescribing, simple past and past participle prescribed)

  1. To order (a drug or medical device) for use by a particular patient (under licensed authority).
    • The doctor prescribed aspirin.
  2. To specify by writing as a required procedure or ritual; to lay down authoritatively as a guide, direction, or rule of action.
    • The property meets the criteria prescribed by the regulations.
  3. To develop or assert a right; to make a claim (by prescription).
    • Most probable that one presentation and 40 years possession thereafter, is sufficient to prescribe a right of patronage.1753, Andrew McDouall, An Institute of the Laws of Scotland in Civil Rights […] , volume 3, Table of Contents, page 86
  4. To become invalidated or unenforceable by prescription, to lapse

Adjective

prescribed (comparative more prescribed, superlative most prescribed)

  1. Of a procedure, specified to a great degree of detail; established as following a strict procedure or set of rules.
    • Short-term energy monitoring tuning follows a very prescribed procedure; building shell parameters are adjusted first, then HVAC efficiency.
    Synonyms:
    prescript

Synonyms of prescribed

Forms of prescribed

comparativemore prescribed
superlativemost prescribed

Words formed from prescribed

Phrases with prescribed

Questions about prescribed

What does prescribed mean?
Prescribed means of a procedure, specified to a great degree of detail; established as following a strict procedure or set of rules.
What is prescribed the simple past and past participle of?
Prescribed is the simple past and past participle of prescribe.
What part of speech is prescribed?
Prescribed is an adjective.
How do you pronounce prescribed?
Prescribed is pronounced /pɹəˈskɹaɪbd/.

Words near prescribed in the dictionary

  1. prescreenings
  2. prescreens
  3. prescribability
  4. prescribable
  5. prescribe
  6. prescribed
  7. prescribed burn
  8. prescribed burning
  9. prescribed burns
  10. prescribee
  11. prescribees

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: prescribed (page history and authors); prescribe (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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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-prescribed.ogg.

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