fore·or·dain
ˌfȯr-ȯr-ˈdān 
foreordained; foreordaining; foreordains
: to dispose or appoint in advance : predestine
: the quality or state of being foreordained
especially
: predestination sense 2
Examples of foreordain in a Sentence
Verb
we are such good friends, it's almost like we were foreordained to meet
Recent Examples on the Web
Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024
Before anything else is said about Lana Del Rey’s new album, let it be noted that however well the record came out, it was foreordained to come in second among her artistic works of the past year.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Mar. 2023
Pelosi is more than happy for additional evidence to be disclosed and for the Senate to call witnesses, even after the House has impeached and when the resolution of the trial is foreordained.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 17 Jan. 2020
The outcome was not foreordained, for either Bork or Mr. Biden.
—Alexander Burns, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2019
The 41st president, who couldn’t always get his sentences straight, wasn’t foreordained for history’s hall of fame.
—Josef Joffe, WSJ, 3 Dec. 2018
Aster piles on the personal confrontations and emotional breakdowns, but compounds them with unnerving new hauntings, all the way up to an ending that feels foreordained, but still shattering.
—Tasha Robinson, The Verge, 8 June 2018
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Verb
Wagner commented that in opera the orchestra should act as a medium of premonition, indicating what is foreordained but not yet foreseen.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024
Before anything else is said about Lana Del Rey’s new album, let it be noted that however well the record came out, it was foreordained to come in second among her artistic works of the past year.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Mar. 2023
Pelosi is more than happy for additional evidence to be disclosed and for the Senate to call witnesses, even after the House has impeached and when the resolution of the trial is foreordained.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 17 Jan. 2020
The outcome was not foreordained, for either Bork or Mr. Biden.
—Alexander Burns, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2019
The 41st president, who couldn’t always get his sentences straight, wasn’t foreordained for history’s hall of fame.
—Josef Joffe, WSJ, 3 Dec. 2018
Aster piles on the personal confrontations and emotional breakdowns, but compounds them with unnerving new hauntings, all the way up to an ending that feels foreordained, but still shattering.
—Tasha Robinson, The Verge, 8 June 2018
Cite this Entry
“Foreordain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foreordain. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
foreordain
verb
fore·or·dain
ˌfōr-ȯr-ˈdān
ˌfȯr-
: to determine in advance : predestine
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