What does premeditate mean?
Premeditate means to think about or plan something before doing it. The word is especially common in legal and news contexts describing crimes that were planned in advance, as in a premeditated attack or premeditated murder, but it can also be used in a neutral sense for deliberate preparation. Its association with careful advance planning makes it stronger and more serious than simply saying that someone planned something. Premeditation emphasizes both timing and intention: the act was not spontaneous or accidental. The related noun premeditation is used especially in criminal law and in discussions of premeditated violence. Understanding the word is useful because it identifies the preparation stage of an action and signals that the person involved had opportunity and intent to carry it out.
verbTo plan or think about something in advance, especially with the intention of carrying it out. It is often used in reference to planning a crime or another harmful act.
- To plan or consider something beforehand, especially a crime or other harmful act.
- To think about or deliberate on something in advance.
"The investigators believed that the attack had been premeditated."
"The defendant claimed that he had not premeditated the theft."
"They premeditated the journey for months, comparing routes and accommodation."
A premeditated act begins before the action does: the planning is itself the first step.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does premeditate come from?
Premeditate comes from the Latin praemeditari, formed from prae-, meaning “before,” and meditari, meaning “to ponder, reflect, or practise.” The English word entered use in the early 17th century and originally referred to thinking or planning something in advance. Its modern association with planned wrongdoing developed from that general sense of prior consideration and deliberate preparation.
Related word forms
How premeditate is actually used
In modern usage, premeditate most often has a negative or legally serious connotation, especially when describing criminal violence. The verb is also used more neutrally for careful advance planning.
Easily confused with premeditate
Premeditate means to plan something in advance, whereas deliberate can mean to think carefully about a decision or to act intentionally.