preventive
adj.adj. used to stop something bad from happening before it starts. You use this to describe things like medicine or safety rules that keep you healthy or safe.
adj. intended to stop something, such as a disease or an accident, from occurring. Often used attributively before a noun.
Regular exercise is a great preventive measure for many health problems.
The company implemented new preventive maintenance schedules to avoid expensive equipment failures during the busy season.
Public health officials argue that investing in preventive care today will significantly reduce the long-term financial burden on the national healthcare system over the next decade.
Borrowed from New Latin praeventīvus. Equivalent to prevent + -ive.
Typically placed before the noun it modifies. While 'preventative' is a common variant, 'preventive' is generally preferred in medical and technical contexts.
a preventive from the diseasea preventive measure against the diseaseIn modern English, 'preventive' is primarily used as an adjective; using it as a standalone noun is less common and often requires a following noun like 'measure' or 'action'.