Pre*tib"i*al (?), a. (Anat.) Situated in front of the tibia.
Pre"tor (?), n. [L. praetor, for praeitor, fr. praeire to go before;
prae before + ire to go. See Issue.] 1. (Rom. Antiq.) A civil officer
or magistrate among the ancient Romans.
Originally the pretor was a kind of third consul; but at an early
period two pretors were appointed, the first of whom (praetor urbanus)
was a kind of mayor or city judge; the other (praetor peregrinus) was a
judge of cases in which one or both of the parties were foreigners.
Still later, the number of pretors, or judges, was further increased.