prophetic

adjective

pro·phet·ic | \ prə-ˈfe-tik

variants: or less commonly prophetical \ prə-ˈfe-ti-kəl

Definition of prophetic

1 : of, relating to, or characteristic of a prophet or prophecy

2 : foretelling events : predictive

Other Words from prophetic Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about prophetic

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of prophetic in a Sentence

the prophetic books of the Old Testament in retrospect, those lower-than-expected sales numbers were a prophetic indicator of the financial trouble the company would soon be in

Recent Examples on the Web

Traditional religion, in its most prophetic and morally serious expression, might have held back the forces of bigotry and terror. — Joseph Loconte, WSJ, "The Versailles Treaty Gets a Bum Rap," 27 June 2019 Linda’s entrance into the world was big, loud and prophetic. — Ellen Olivier, latimes.com, "Linda Perry, Suzanne Todd receive honors at Chrysalis Butterfly Ball," 3 June 2019 Just more than 10 years after Mitch Barnhart hired John Calipari as his men’s basketball coach, the Kentucky athletics director’s initial comments sound prophetic. — Jon Hale, The Courier-Journal, "How John Calipari's contract has changed over 10 years as Kentucky's basketball coach," 17 June 2019 The prophetic books do not come last so as to lead into the New Testament, but follow the Torah (the books of Moses) as commentary on it. — John Barton, Time, "Judaism and Christianity Both Rely on the Hebrew Bible. Why Do They Interpret It So Differently?," 14 June 2019 Back in February, Binnington gifted Blues fans with a top-quality one-liner that would prove to be pretty prophetic. — Aj Willingham, CNN, "Jordan Binnington was the Stanley Cup's unlikely hero," 13 June 2019 Snyder’s tone of prophetic certainty and his bombastic call for resistance against the dark and all-pervasive forces of Russian neofascism is illuminating more as a symptom of the times than as a work of history. — Adam Tooze, The New York Review of Books, "Democracy and Its Discontents," 6 June 2019 The actress/singer holds a special place in Zellweger's heart, from her childhood listening to Garland's records with her parents to an almost prophetic moment during her Bridget Jones years. — Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, "Renée Zellweger on Her "Fantastically Violent” What/If Experience With a Co-Star Jane Levy," 24 May 2019 Lang was speaking generally about the fact that Will, Kate, and their St. Andrews classmates could meet their future spouses at the school, but the speech still reads as prophetic today. — Kayleigh Roberts, Marie Claire, "The Head of Prince William and Kate Middleton's College Predicted Their Marriage," 4 May 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'prophetic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.