foretell
verb
; foretelling transitive verb
Synonyms
- augur
- call
- forecast
- predict
- presage
- prognosticate
- prophesy
- read
- vaticinate
Example Sentences
Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 12 Aug. 2022 As good as free textbooks are, the Cengage/McMurry/OpenStax deal may also foretell a big shift in education publishing, which some analysists have characterized as on the brink of collapse pretty much since the advent of the internet. Derek Newton, Forbes, 11 Aug. 2022 Which is a long or short way of telling critics and fans to stop cheering or critiquing a future that none of us can realistically foretell. John Tamny, Forbes, 25 Apr. 2022 Preseasons don’t always foretell the regular season, but the Lakers went winless in theirs. New York Times, 8 Apr. 2022 After Republican Glenn Youngkin won the governorship, commentators dissected the results to foretell the outcome of elections in 2022, 2024 and beyond. Nicole Hemmer, CNN, 17 Feb. 2022 Prokofiev meant for this symphony to capture the mood of a horrendous war not having sapped the spirit of his people at the moment Russia could foretell victory. Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2022 Moiraine, for example, meets up with Min (Kae Alexander), an undercover bartender with the ability to see visions that foretell the future. Randall Colburn, EW.com, 17 Dec. 2021 But whether Sigal’s lab experiments foretell reduced vaccine protection in real life is still uncertain, says Sarah Cobey, an epidemiologist and evolutionary biologist at the University of Chicago. Charles Schmidt, Scientific American, 17 Dec. 2021 See More Word History
14th century, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
foretell
verb
foretell
verb
Synonyms & Similar Words
- predict
- presage
- read
- anticipate
- prognosticate
- prophesy
- augur
- forecast
- warn
- foresee
- announce
- call
- portend
- promise
- forebode
- bode
- forewarn
- herald
- alert
- foreknow
- vaticinate
- declare
- divine
- proclaim
- caution
- forbode
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- tell
- relate
- describe
- report
- narrate
- recite
- recount
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of foretell are forecast, predict, prognosticate, and prophesy. While all these words mean "to tell beforehand," foretell applies to the telling of the coming of a future event by any procedure or any source of information.
Forecast adds the implication of anticipating eventualities and differs from predict in being usually concerned with probabilities rather than certainties.
The words predict and foretell are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, predict commonly implies inference from facts or accepted laws of nature.
Prognosticate is used less often than the other words; it may suggest learned or skilled interpretation, but more often it is simply a colorful substitute for predict or prophesy.
While the synonyms prophesy and foretell are close in meaning, prophesy connotes inspired or mystic knowledge of the future especially as the fulfilling of divine threats or promises.