2. The state of being prepared or made ready; preparedness;
readiness; fitness; as, a nation in good preparation for
war.
3. That which makes ready, prepares the way, or introduces; a
preparatory act or measure.
I will show what preparations there were in nature
for this dissolution. --T. Burnet.
4. That which is prepared, made, or compounded by a certain
process or for a particular purpose; a combination.
Specifically:
(a) Any medicinal substance fitted for use.
(b) Anything treated for preservation or examination as a
specimen.
(c) Something prepared for use in cookery.
I wish the chemists had been more sparing who
magnify their preparations. --Sir T.
Browne.
In the preparations of cookery, the most
volatile parts of vegetables are destroyed.
--Arbuthnot.
5. An army or fleet. [Obs.] --Shak.
6. (Mus.) The holding over of a note from one chord into the
next chord, where it forms a temporary discord, until
resolved in the chord that follows; the anticipation of a
discordant note in the preceding concord, so that the ear
is prepared for the shock. See {Suspension}.
7. Accomplishment; qualification. [Obs.] --Shak.