fore

1 of 6

noun

ˈfȯr 

: something that occupies a front position

fore

2 of 6

adverb

1

: in, toward, or near the front : forward

The plane's exits are located fore and aft.

2

obsolete : at an earlier time or period

fore

3 of 6

adjective

1

: situated in front of something else : forward

2

: prior in order of occurrence : former

fore

4 of 6

preposition

variants or less commonly 'fore

1

: in the presence of

2

chiefly dialectal : before

fore

5 of 6

interjection

—used by a golfer to warn anyone within range of the probable line of flight of the ball

fore-

6 of 6

combining form

1

a

: earlier : beforehand

foresee

b

: occurring earlier : occurring beforehand

foreshock

2

a

: situated at the front : in front

foreleg

b

: front part of (something specified)

forearm

c

: foremast

foretop

Phrases

to the fore

: in or into a position of prominence : forward

Synonyms

Adjective

• front

Preposition

• before
• to
• till
• until

Examples of fore in a Sentence

Adverb

The plane's exits are located fore and aft.

Adjective

the fore and aft cabins

cats have five fore toes but only four hind toes

Preposition

set out early with the hope of arriving fore the sunset

fore the stranger there swarmed a gaggle of curious street urchins

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Google's push to bring Gemini to the fore in the digital battleground against tools from Open AI, Anthropic and Perpexity. —Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 28 June 2025

And Hwang’s nuanced critique of democracy comes to the fore. —Michael Ordoña, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2025

Adjective

Now, Moore’s work on The Substance has brought to the fore conversations about how society devalues women with age. —Time, 16 Apr. 2025

Elsewhere, the corset served as a blank canvas, bringing other trends to the fore like bow embellishments, colorful florals and Ren-fair references. —Emily Mercer, Footwear News, 23 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adverb and Preposition

Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old English for

Adjective and Noun

fore-

Interjection

probably short for before

Combining form

Middle English for-, fore-, from Old English fore-, from fore, adverb

First Known Use

Noun

1637, in the meaning defined above

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Preposition

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Interjection

circa 1878, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing fore

• fore and aft
• fore-and-after
• fore-and-aft rig
• fore-topmast

Rhymes for fore

• boar
• boer
• bore
• chore
• cor
• core
• corps
• crore
• door
• drawer
• floor
• flor

Kids Definition

fore

1 of 5 adverb

ˈfō(ə)r 

ˈfȯ(ə)r

: in, toward, or near the front : forward

fore

2 of 5 adjective

: being or coming before in time, order, or space

fore

3 of 5 noun

: a front place or position

came to the fore

fore

4 of 5 interjection

—used by a golfer to warn anyone within range of a hit ball

fore-

5 of 5 combining form

1

a

: earlier : beforehand

foresee

b

: occurring earlier : occurring beforehand

forethought

2

a

: situated at the front : in front

foreleg

b

: front part of (something specified)

forearm

Etymology

Combining form

Old English fore- "earlier, beforehand"

Medical Definition

fore

adjective

ˈfō(ə)r, ˈfȯ(ə)r 

: situated in front of something else