Definition of "premillennialism" []

• The belief that the Second Coming of Jesus will immediately precede the millennium. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "This doctrine—that the second coming takes place before the millennium—is known as premillennialism."
• "Since his release from prison, he has switched over to premillennialism and preaches a pretty good end-times sermon."
• "However, the Protestant Reformers of the sixteenth century continued to hold the Augustinian view of the millennium; nevertheless they suggested changes in eschatological interpretation that led to a renewal of premillennialism in the seventeenth century."