Pre-clūde′, v. t.

v. t. [imp. & p. p. PREC LUDED; p. pr. & vb. n. PRECLUDING.] [Lat. præcludere, fr. præ, before, and claudere, cludere, to shut; It. precludere.] 1. To shut up or shut out; to stop. [Rare.] The valves preclude the blood from entering the veins. Darwin. 2. To shut out by anticipative action; to prevent by necessary consequence or implication; to deter action of, access to, enjoyment of, &c.; to shut off; to hinder. “Preclude the objections of our adversaries.” Bentley.