fore·ground
ˈfȯr-ˌgrau̇nd 
1
: the part of a scene or representation that is nearest to and in front of the spectator
Objects in the foreground seem larger than those in the background.
2
: a position of prominence : forefront
We want this issue to be in the foreground.
3
: a level of computer processing at which the processor responds immediately to input to a designated high-priority task compare background
foregrounded; foregrounding; foregrounds
: to bring to the foreground
especially
: to give prominence or emphasis to
Synonyms
Examples of foreground in a Sentence
Noun
We want the issue to be in the foreground.
Verb
Public discussion has foregrounded the issue of health care.
repeatedly foregrounded his experience in international affairs in the course of his campaign for the presidency
Recent Examples on the Web
Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024
Hildale, Utah, is pictured sitting at the base of Red Rock Cliff mountains, with its sister city, Colorado City, Ariz., in the foreground on Dec. 16, 2014.
—CBS News, 20 Mar. 2024
As the ranks of the royals have thinned, William’s family has come to the foreground at events like the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II and the coronation of Charles.
—Mark Landler, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2024
Her style is starker and more stylized, with bold blacks as backdrops or in shadowy figures in the foreground.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2024
The factories on the opposite riverbank are obscured by the haze, a mere backdrop to the lush foreground, which bursts with blush-pink and white blossoms.
—Angelica Aboulhosn, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Dec. 2023
Presidential adviser Henry Kissinger, across table, and Le Duc Tho, foreground, head of the Hanoi delegation, initial the Vietnam peace agreement in the International Conference Center in Paris, Jan. 24, 1973.
—Kathryn Watson, CBS News, 30 Nov. 2023
Ironically, this teleporting spike ends up a roving metaphor, too malleable and too removed to echo the characters in the foreground.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024
Without spoiling it, the last shot of the film is played through a car window with Jackie in the foreground and Lou going through this great bit of business in the background that goes on for a very long time.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
Executive produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, the show has a traditional feel, foregrounding the psychological and emotional toll paid by these young men.
—Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024
By contrast, shows and films that foreground male journalists—The Newsroom, All the President's Men, Network, The Hour, the final season of The Wire—tend to be straightforward dramas, unbeholden to assumptions about a gendered audience.
—TIME, 14 Mar. 2024
And while the formats vary, the common denominator centers on foregrounding the intersectionality of their identities as 21st century visual creators.
—Amy Carleton, Charlotte Observer, 29 Feb. 2024
Don’t miss Sofonisba Anguissola’s compelling portrait of a noblewoman, made in the mid-16th century, in a gallery devoted to portraiture that foregrounds power (which also includes great works by Holbein, Lucas Cranach the Elder and Bronzino).
—Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, 18 Jan. 2024
There remains a cultural need for narratives that foreground the AIDS epidemic, that acknowledge the horrors of the Holocaust and slavery.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Oct. 2023
One way is to foreground your obsessive commitment to the role—but even that can strike a false note.
—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2024
Such a strategy might help foreground the play’s historical roots.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2024
Noun
What makes the picture so beautiful is the pall of spidery dark lines in the foreground.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024
Hildale, Utah, is pictured sitting at the base of Red Rock Cliff mountains, with its sister city, Colorado City, Ariz., in the foreground on Dec. 16, 2014.
—CBS News, 20 Mar. 2024
As the ranks of the royals have thinned, William’s family has come to the foreground at events like the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II and the coronation of Charles.
—Mark Landler, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2024
Her style is starker and more stylized, with bold blacks as backdrops or in shadowy figures in the foreground.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2024
The factories on the opposite riverbank are obscured by the haze, a mere backdrop to the lush foreground, which bursts with blush-pink and white blossoms.
—Angelica Aboulhosn, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Dec. 2023
Presidential adviser Henry Kissinger, across table, and Le Duc Tho, foreground, head of the Hanoi delegation, initial the Vietnam peace agreement in the International Conference Center in Paris, Jan. 24, 1973.
—Kathryn Watson, CBS News, 30 Nov. 2023
Ironically, this teleporting spike ends up a roving metaphor, too malleable and too removed to echo the characters in the foreground.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024
Without spoiling it, the last shot of the film is played through a car window with Jackie in the foreground and Lou going through this great bit of business in the background that goes on for a very long time.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024
Verb
After the Parton speech, the riff surges from background to foreground.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
Executive produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, the show has a traditional feel, foregrounding the psychological and emotional toll paid by these young men.
—Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024
By contrast, shows and films that foreground male journalists—The Newsroom, All the President's Men, Network, The Hour, the final season of The Wire—tend to be straightforward dramas, unbeholden to assumptions about a gendered audience.
—TIME, 14 Mar. 2024
And while the formats vary, the common denominator centers on foregrounding the intersectionality of their identities as 21st century visual creators.
—Amy Carleton, Charlotte Observer, 29 Feb. 2024
Don’t miss Sofonisba Anguissola’s compelling portrait of a noblewoman, made in the mid-16th century, in a gallery devoted to portraiture that foregrounds power (which also includes great works by Holbein, Lucas Cranach the Elder and Bronzino).
—Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, 18 Jan. 2024
There remains a cultural need for narratives that foreground the AIDS epidemic, that acknowledge the horrors of the Holocaust and slavery.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Oct. 2023
One way is to foreground your obsessive commitment to the role—but even that can strike a false note.
—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2024
Such a strategy might help foreground the play’s historical roots.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'foreground.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near foreground
Cite this Entry
“Foreground.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foreground. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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