preliminary

初步的、初期的

Preliminary results suggest the new treatment works for most patients.

初步结果显示，这种新疗法对大多数病人有效。

预备的、事前的

We held a preliminary meeting to set the agenda.

我们开了一次预备会议，订出议程。

预赛的、资格赛的体育

She was eliminated in the preliminary rounds of the tournament.

她在这场赛事的预赛阶段就被淘汰了。

准备工作、初步措施常用复数

Let's skip the preliminaries and get to the main issue.

我们别再啰嗦客套，直接进入重点吧。

预赛、资格赛

Only the top three from each preliminary advance to the final.

每场预赛只有前三名可以晋级决赛。