Pre-set or preset?
pre-set is a verb meaning “Alternative form of preset”; preset is a verb meaning “To set something in advance”. pre-set is written with a hyphen and preset as one word; they are used differently. They sound the same (/pɹiːˈsɛt/).
What is the difference between pre-set and preset?
| pre-set | preset | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb | adjective, verb, noun |
| Meaning | Alternative form of preset | Set in advance, especially as a default The preset settings are fine for most users To set something in advance |
| Example | none recorded | I preset it the right way, so don't change any settings |
| Forms | pre-sets, pre-setting | presets, presetting |
| Pronunciation | /pɹiːˈsɛt/ | /ˈpɹiːsɛt/ /pɹiːˈsɛt/ /ˈpɹiːset/ |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | about once in every 1 million words |
Sources: pre-set and preset in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of pre-set and preset
pre-set
- 1
Alternative form of preset
preset
- 1
Set in advance, especially as a default
- 2
To set something in advance
I preset it the right way, so don't change any settings
- 3
A setting that is set in advance
I thought I liked the default settings, but it turned out that it's your presets I prefer
- 4
The preset settings are fine for most users
- 5
A kind of variable resistor designed to have its resistance stay at the value set when building the circuit
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, pre-set or preset?
pre-set is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; preset about once in every 1 million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search pre-set vs preset?
“pre-set vs preset” is searched about 10 times a month on Google and 10 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“preset vs pre-set”, “pre-set or preset”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.