- prelude
- 1561, from M.Fr. prélude "notes sung or played to test the voice or instrument" (1532), from M.L. preludium "prelude, preliminary," from L. prĉludere "to play beforehand for practice, preface," from prĉ- "before" + ludere "to play" (see ludicrous). Purely musical sense first attested in Eng. 1658.