Q: Which is correct? “Preventive” or “preventative”? I see both and the former seems better to me, the latter kind of clunky. Maybe they’re both acceptable and it’s a matter of style. What do you say?
A: Both “preventive” and “preventative” appeared in the 17th century, as adjectives as well as nouns, and were used interchangeably for about two centuries without comment.
In the 19th century, some language writers began criticizing “preventative.” Although most standard dictionaries now recognize both forms, some usage guides still prefer the shorter one.
Garner’s Modern English Usage (4th ed.), for example, calls “preventative” a “corrupt form,” but Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage says “both words have been around for over 300 years and both have had regular use by reputable writers.”
Here’s a “preventative” example from Anthony Trollope’s novel Dr. Thorne (1858): “Now there never had been much cordiality between the squire and Dr Fillgrave, though Mr Gresham had consented to take a preventative pill from his hands.”
Searches with Google’s Ngram viewer, which compares terms in digitized books, indicates that “preventive” is the preferred adjective (as in “preventive measures”) while “preventative” is the preferred noun (“a reliable preventative”).
As for the etymology, when the adjective “preventive” first appeared in the early 17th century, it meant that which “prevents or guards against the occurrence of something,” according to the Oxford English Dictionary.
The earliest citation in the dictionary is from an essay in which the English philosopher and statesman Francis Bacon argues that England should launch a preemptive war against Spain:
“Warres preuentiue vpon just feares, are true defensiues, as well as vpon actuall inuasions” (from Considerations Touching a Warre With Spaine, written in 1624 and published in 1629).
The noun “preventive” appeared two decades later and meant “a preventive or precautionary agent or measure; a means of prevention; a hindrance, an obstacle,” according to the OED.
The first Oxford example is from Reliquiae Wottonianae (1651), a posthumously published collection of lives, letters, poems, etc., by Sir Henry Wotton (1568-1639), an English diplomat and author: “a natural preventive to some evils.”
As for the longer term, “preventative” first appeared as an adjective in the mid-17th century and referred to that which “prevents or guards against the occurrence of something; precautionary.”
The earliest OED citation is from Parthenissa (1655), a romance by Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery: “All preventative thoughts of hostility were silenc’d.”
The longer noun appeared in the late 17th century and meant “an agent or measure that prevents the occurrence of something; a means of prevention; an obstacle, a hindrance.”
The first OED citation is from Πλανηλογια (Planilogia, Planning), a 1691 treatise about mental errors, by the Puritan Presbyterian minister and writer John Flavel: “The Remedies and Preventatives in this Case, are such as follow.”
Both adjectives now refer to keeping something undesirable such as illness or harm from occurring, while the two nouns now generally refer to a medicine or other treatment designed to prevent illness.
The earliest criticism of “preventative” that we’ve seen is from John Russell Bartlett’s Dictionary of Americanisms (1848), which describes it as “a corruption sometimes met with for preventive both in England and America.”
Should you use “preventive” or “preventative”? The choice is up to you. They’ve both been around for centuries and used by respected writers, but “preventative” may raise a few eyebrows.
As Merriam-Webster’s usage guide puts it, use the longer term “if you decide you like the sound of the extra syllable and are willing to brave possible criticism.”
Help support the Grammarphobia Blog with your donation. And check out our books about the English language and more.
