The prefixes "pre-" and "post-" refer to events before and after. For instance, "pre-season" and "post-season" or "pre-study" and "post-study". Is there a prefix fitting this pattern which means "during" that can fit in the form "(prefix)-season" and "(prefix)-study"? "Mid-season" and "mid-study" seems to refer to the middle point, so it does not seem like a good fit.
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4The mid- prefix does not exclusively refer to the midpoint of a fixed period of time. A camera catching someone mid-sneeze, for example, is any time during the sneeze.– Adam MuschCommented Aug 29, 2013 at 5:05
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2Possible duplicate of If 'pre' is previous, 'post' is after, what is current?– MetaEdCommented Apr 11, 2016 at 18:03
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@MετάEd normally I'm in favour of closing questions as duplicates but the older question is closed, and if we close this one too, then no one could submit a different, or better-quality answer.– Mari-Lou ACommented Apr 11, 2016 at 19:50
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@Mari-LouA Both questions are general reference.– MetaEdCommented Apr 11, 2016 at 20:47
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@MετάEd I don't think so, the older question was closed because the obvious answer seemed to be "current" (as suggested by Barrie England) your upvoted suggestion came a day later when it was almost too late to save the question. Your vote says that this is a duplicate, but now you're saying it's GR. I've Googled the OP's question and got inter and dia but not peri, intra nor in-, so there seems to be more than one acceptable answer.– Mari-Lou ACommented Apr 11, 2016 at 21:38
5 Answers
I'm not a language expert but I think intra- is the prefix you are looking for:
1a : within <intragalactic>
b : during <intraday>
c : between layers of <intradermal>
source: merriam-webster.com
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3Because of this dictionary entry: merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intra- Commented Aug 27, 2013 at 13:32
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I personally see the prefix intra- connected with movement, e.g. when I'm moving within some area - I would use "intra-" to describe it and when from one area to another - I would use "inter-". In this case I believe that "in-" fits better the response to OP question.– lewiatanCommented Apr 14, 2021 at 7:49
It varies from word to word, depending on the specific example, but the most common prefix is in-, or for there to be no prefix at all:
I can't wait for the season to start. The in-season games are so much better than the preseason ones!
After a bit of pre-study work, we did some studying, and then went for post-study drinks.
What about peri- as in perinatal. It does mean "around, about", and if used in a sense of time (as in perinatal) this could mean "during"
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1I think precisely because it means "around" it doesn't mean "during". Think about perimeter. What's on the perimeter is not in the circle. Commented Jul 30, 2015 at 15:34
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@JoeCorneli This is why I added "if used in a sense of time". A perimeter is clearly space, not time. There is nothing "during" a meter. Anyway, this argument holds true for all possible answers, as we humans rarely have any words or prefixes that only and exactly mean one thing. Commented Jul 31, 2015 at 8:26
In medical terms, it's "preoperative," "intraoperative," and "postoperative," with "perioperative" encompassing the entire surgical process: before, during, and after (according to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perioperative).
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Actually, this answer has the same problems as skymningen's (it's almost a duplicate): Peri-op care is the care that is given before, during and after surgery. But the article you link to mentions intraoperative care (supporting the idea from Khalid Hussain's post). Commented Jul 30, 2015 at 15:38
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@JoeCorneli, Skymningen suggested that peri- could mean during, while PtronAv explained that peri- means before, during, and after. This answer does not appear to have any problems to me. Commented Apr 4, 2018 at 0:29
What I mostly see is the mid- prefix as in mid-season.
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Sorry, now I see OP is looking for a term that covers the whole, overall time period. Commented Aug 27, 2013 at 18:24