Synonyms of foresee

foresee

verb

fȯr-ˈsē 

as in to anticipate

to realize or know about beforehand

a freak accident that no one could possibly have foreseen

Synonyms & Similar Words

• anticipate
• predict
• divine
• fear
• envision
• foreknow
• foretell
• envisage
• prevision
• presage
• forecast
• visualize
• perceive
• prognosticate
• foreshadow
• prophesy
• forefeel
• prefigure
• dread
• forewarn
• augur
• alert
• caution
• discern
• preview
• apprehend
• foretoken
• descry

Synonym Chooser

How is the word foresee different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of foresee are anticipate, divine, and foreknow. While all these words mean "to know beforehand," foresee implies nothing about how the knowledge is derived and may apply to ordinary reasoning and experience.

economists should have foreseen the recession

When could anticipate be used to replace foresee?

Although the words anticipate and foresee have much in common, anticipate implies taking action about or responding emotionally to something before it happens.

the waiter anticipated our every need

How are the words divine and foresee related?

Divine adds to foresee the suggestion of exceptional wisdom or discernment.

was able to divine Europe's rapid recovery from the war

When is it sensible to use foreknow instead of foresee?

The synonyms foreknow and foresee are sometimes interchangeable, but foreknow usually implies supernatural assistance, as through revelation.

if only we could foreknow our own destinies

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of foresee

With those capital resources, plus around $595 million in cash reserves as of September 30, Joshi foresees no financial constraints in scaling up to 2 GW this year. —Bob Woods, CNBC, 11 Jan. 2026

The designer wrote his master’s thesis on wearables, foreseeing how smart clothing and other technologies could become part of daily life even before wireless technologies like Wifi and Bluetooth were standard. —Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 6 Jan. 2026

While experts think that significantly boosting oil production in Venezuela could cost upwards of $100 billion and take at least a decade, some Wall Street analysts foresee a potentially faster upgrade. —Alain Sherter, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026

China’s most consequential victory is something no sentient person could have possibly foreseen. —Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 3 Jan. 2026