prefer

pre·fer

P0519700 (prĭ-fûr′)tr.v. pre·ferred, pre·fer·ring, pre·fers 1. To choose or be in the habit of choosing as more desirable or as having more value: prefers coffee to tea.2. Law a. To give priority or precedence to (a creditor).b. To present (a charge) against a defendant before a court: prefer an indictment.c. To present (a case) to a court as ready for consideration: prefer the case for trial.3. Archaic To recommend for advancement or appointment; promote.

[Middle English preferren, from Old French preferer, from Latin praeferre : prae-, pre- + ferre, to carry; see bher- in Indo-European roots.]

pre·fer′rer n.

prefer

(prɪˈfɜː) vb, -fers, -ferring or -ferred1. (when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to like better or value more highly: I prefer to stand. 2. (Law) law to give preference, esp to one creditor over others3. (Law) (esp of the police) to put (charges) before a court, judge, magistrate, etc, for consideration and judgment4. (tr; often passive) to advance in rank over another or others; promote[C14: from Latin praeferre to carry in front, prefer, from prae in front + ferre to bear] preˈferrer nUsage: Normally, to is used after prefer and preferable, not than: I prefer Brahms to Tchaikovsky; a small income is preferable to no income at all. However, than or rather than should be used to link infinitives: I prefer to walk than/rather than to catch the train

pre•fer

(prɪˈfɜr)

v.t. -ferred, -fer•ring. 1. to set or hold before or above other persons or things in estimation; like better: I prefer school to work. 2. to give priority to, as to one creditor over another. 3. to put forward or present for consideration or sanction. 4. to put forward or advance, as in rank or office; promote. Idioms: prefer charges, to make or place an accusation of misconduct, wrongdoing, etc., against another. [1350–1400; Middle English preferren < Latin praeferre to bear before, set before, prefer =prae- pre- + ferre to bear¹]

prefer

If you prefer one person or thing to another, you like the first one better.

I prefer art to sports.She preferred cooking at home to eating in restaurants.

Be Careful!
Don't use any preposition except to in sentences like these. Don't say, for example 'I prefer art than sports'.

Prefer is rather formal. In ordinary conversation, you often use expressions such as like...better and would ratherÉ instead. For example, instead of saying 'I prefer football to tennis', you can say 'I like football better than tennis'. Instead of saying 'I'd prefer an apple', you can say 'I'd rather have an apple'.

prefer

Past participle: preferred
Gerund: preferring

Imperative
prefer
prefer

Present
I prefer
you prefer
he/she/it prefers
we prefer
you prefer
they prefer

Preterite
I preferred
you preferred
he/she/it preferred
we preferred
you preferred
they preferred

Present Continuous
I am preferring
you are preferring
he/she/it is preferring
we are preferring
you are preferring
they are preferring

Present Perfect
I have preferred
you have preferred
he/she/it has preferred
we have preferred
you have preferred
they have preferred

Past Continuous
I was preferring
you were preferring
he/she/it was preferring
we were preferring
you were preferring
they were preferring

Past Perfect
I had preferred
you had preferred
he/she/it had preferred
we had preferred
you had preferred
they had preferred

Future
I will prefer
you will prefer
he/she/it will prefer
we will prefer
you will prefer
they will prefer

Future Perfect
I will have preferred
you will have preferred
he/she/it will have preferred
we will have preferred
you will have preferred
they will have preferred

Future Continuous
I will be preferring
you will be preferring
he/she/it will be preferring
we will be preferring
you will be preferring
they will be preferring

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been preferring
you have been preferring
he/she/it has been preferring
we have been preferring
you have been preferring
they have been preferring

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been preferring
you will have been preferring
he/she/it will have been preferring
we will have been preferring
you will have been preferring
they will have been preferring

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been preferring
you had been preferring
he/she/it had been preferring
we had been preferring
you had been preferring
they had been preferring

Conditional
I would prefer
you would prefer
he/she/it would prefer
we would prefer
you would prefer
they would prefer

Past Conditional
I would have preferred
you would have preferred
he/she/it would have preferred
we would have preferred
you would have preferred
they would have preferred

Thesaurus

Verb	1.	prefer - like better; value more highly; "Some people prefer camping to staying in hotels"; "We prefer sleeping outside"like - find enjoyable or agreeable; "I like jogging"; "She likes to read Russian novels"
	2.	prefer - select as an alternative over another; "I always choose the fish over the meat courses in this restaurant"; "She opted for the job on the East coast"opt, choosecop out, opt out - choose not to do something, as out of fear of failing; "She copped out when she was supposed to get into the hang glider"
	3.	prefer - promote over another; "he favors his second daughter"favor, favourelevate, kick upstairs, promote, upgrade, advance, raise - give a promotion to or assign to a higher position; "John was kicked upstairs when a replacement was hired"; "Women tend not to advance in the major law firms"; "I got promoted after many years of hard work"advantage - give an advantage to; "This system advantages the rich"
	4.	prefer - give preference to one creditor over anotherlaw, jurisprudence - the collection of rules imposed by authority; "civilization presupposes respect for the law"; "the great problem for jurisprudence to allow freedom while enforcing order"pay - give money, usually in exchange for goods or services; "I paid four dollars for this sandwich"; "Pay the waitress, please"

prefer

verb1. like better, favour, go for, pick, select, adopt, fancy, opt for, single out, plump for, incline towards, be partial to Do you prefer a particular sort of music?2. choose, elect, opt for, pick, wish, desire, would rather, would sooner, incline towards I prefer to go on self-catering holidays.

prefer

verbTo show partiality toward (someone):favor.Idiom: play favorites.

Translations

更喜欢宁愿

prefer

(priˈfəː) – past tense, past participle preˈferred – verb to like better. Which do you prefer – tea or coffee?; I prefer reading to watching television; She would prefer to come with you rather than stay here. 宁愿（选择），更喜欢 ˈpreferable (ˈpre-) adjective more desirable. Is it preferable to write or make a telephone call?更可取的ˈpreferably adverb 更可取（地） ˈpreference (ˈpre-) noun (a) choice of, or (a) liking for, one thing rather than another. He likes most music but he has a preference for classical music.偏爱

I prefer apples to (not than) oranges.
preferable, adjective, is spelt with -r-.
preference, noun, is spelt with -r-.
preferred and preferring are spelt with -rr-.

prefer

→ 更喜欢zhCN

I'd rather ... (US)
I prefer to ... (UK) → 我想要...
I'd prefer to go direct → 我希望买直达的
I'd rather have an earlier flight (US)
I would prefer an earlier flight (UK) → 我想乘坐早一点的航班

prefer

prefer charges

To make a formal complaint of wrongdoing or mistreatment against another person. A: "Is it true that Greg preferred charges against you?" B: "Yes, but his claim is completely false! I've never done anything to him!" I really hope our neighbors don't prefer charges against us—I never would have cut down that tree if I had known it was on their property!See also: charge, prefer

prefer charges against (one)

To file an official legal charge against one; to accuse one of some crime. Used in formal legal language. The woman was given the chance to prefer charges against the man, but she declined. The state will be preferring charges against the company for treason.See also: charge, prefer

prefer (someone or something) to (someone or something else)

To choose, or tend to choose, someone or something as more desirable or valuable than someone or something else. I usually prefer tea to coffee, but I need something a little stronger this morning. I don't know why Amy prefers Tom to Steve—Tom is such a jerk!See also: prefer, something

had (just) as soon do something

and would (just) as soon do somethingprefer to do something else; to be content to do something. (The would or had is usually expressed as the contraction 'd.) They want me to go into town. I'd as soon stay home. If you're cooking stew tonight, we'd as soon eat somewhere else. I would just as soon stay home as pay to go to see a bad movie.See also: soon

prefer someone or something to someone (or something else)

to rank the desirability of someone or something over someone or something else. For the post of treasurer, I prefer Don to Jill. I prefer missing a meal to Jill's cooking.See also: prefer

prefer something against someone

to file legal charges against someone [with the police]; to file a complaint or a charge against someone. The neighbors preferred charges against the driver of the car who ruined their lawns. I will not prefer charges against the driver, since it was partly my fault.See also: prefer

prefer

pre·fer

prefer

pre•fer

prefer

prefer

prefer

prefer

prefer

prefer

prefer

prefer charges

prefer charges against (one)

prefer (someone or something) to (someone or something else)

had (just) as soon do something

prefer someone or something to someone (or something else)

prefer something against someone

prefer

Synonyms for prefer

verb like better

Synonyms

verb choose

Synonyms

Synonyms for prefer

verb to show partiality toward (someone)

Synonyms

Synonyms for prefer

verb like better

Related Words

verb select as an alternative over another

Synonyms

Related Words

verb promote over another

Synonyms

Related Words

verb give preference to one creditor over another

Related Words