What does preferment mean?
Preferment is a formal and somewhat old-fashioned noun meaning the act of choosing one person or thing in preference to another. It can also refer, particularly in legal and historical contexts, to advancement, appointment, or promotion obtained through influence, favor, or established entitlement. Because it is more specific and less common than the everyday word preference, preferment often appears in formal accounts of institutions, appointments, and social position. For example, a writer might say that a candidate received preferment because of her long service, meaning that she was favored for a post. The word is useful when describing a choice or advantage in a measured, institutional, or historical register, though it may sound overly formal in casual conversation.
The act of preferring or choosing one person, thing, or option over another; a preference.
"The committee showed a clear preferment for the proposal that required the least expenditure."
This general sense is formal and less common than preference in modern English.
Promotion, advancement, or appointment obtained through influence, favor, or established entitlement.
"He was granted preferment to the office after many years of public service."
This sense is especially characteristic of legal, historical, and biographical writing and is more common in older English.
The plural is used, though rarely, especially for multiple acts of preference or multiple instances of preferential advancement.
"The records document several preferments granted to members of the founding families."
Preferment once carried the idea of getting ahead: in older English, it could mean promotion or appointment secured through someone's influence.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does preferment come from?
Preferment was formed in English from prefer and the suffix -ment, a combination that was already established for naming actions or processes. Its earliest uses developed from the idea of choosing one thing or person over another. The older sense meaning appointment, advancement, or promotion by favor also arose from the concept of being preferred. Its forms are related to preference, preferable, preferential, and preferentially, all of which continue the Latin-derived sense of choosing in preference to something else.
Related word forms
How preferment is actually used
Preferment is formal, dated, and relatively uncommon in ordinary modern English. It is encountered especially in legal, biographical, and historical prose. The sense involving promotion or appointment is more characteristic of older usage than the general sense of choosing.
Easily confused with preferment
Preferment is a formal or archaic noun for the act of preferring or for advancement obtained by favor, whereas preference is the more common modern term for a favored choice or the favoring of one option over another.