as in forerunner
something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event
the preaching of John the Baptist is generally regarded by Christians as a prefiguring of the ministry of Jesus
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in foreshadowing
to give a slight indication of beforehand
the first crocus traditionally prefigures the arrival of spring
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prefiguring
Noun
-
Las Damas was founded in May 1948 and put on the Beachcomber’s Carnival, a forerunner of the Sunset Beach Art Festival, in July of that year.—
Marla Jo Fisher,
Oc Register,
7 May 2026 -
The brand was also a forerunner with exclusive collaborations.—
Rosemary Feitelberg,
Footwear News,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
Bathrooms are expansive and clad in white marble, foreshadowing the scale of the sublime spa across the street.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Or maybe, as some eyebrow-raising posts on social media jokingly teased, foreshadowing a possible papal presidential run?—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The missive, which could be a precursor to a lawsuit, opens another avenue of attack against the controversial $111-billion deal, which would transform the smaller Paramount into an industry titan.—
Meg James,
Los Angeles Times,
8 May 2026
-
And then, thanks to the precursors to the storm that ultimately ended the first round early — the wind, above all else — the weather made the last few shots on the course brutal.—
Alex Zietlow,
Charlotte Observer,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
Teenagers are more inclined than their elders to get news from nontraditional sources such as social media and influencers, heralding a generational shift in how people seek out information.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Analysts are heralding the 2020s as the biggest chance in the word’s relationship to the dollar since 1974, and every day the Iran war continues, the cracks in the old system grow wider and wider.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Sometimes, the departure of an underperforming executive or official presages improvements ahead.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Apr. 2026
-
An index of 50 is balanced and presages neither economic expansion nor contraction.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The company’s example was seen by many as a portent of the AI future.—
Geoff Colvin,
Fortune,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Rather than receiving traditional care, however, Hylton was unwittingly plunged into a cold experiment in using remote work to offset hospital staffing shortages, which could be a grim portent in an age of AI automation.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
This knowledge is critical for monitoring and predicting how our ocean-climate system is shifting, affecting both people and ecosystems in our changing world.—
Kurt Snibbe,
Oc Register,
8 May 2026
-
Twenty years ago, during my first year as a geoscience undergraduate, a lecturer told me that predicting when and where the next major eruption would take place was a pipe dream — the implication being that volcanoes are far too idiosyncratic and mercurial to have much in common with one another.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 May 2026
Noun
-
With hints of Nashville and LA sprinkled throughout the shop, a KC native just opened a new boutique and embroidery bar in the Northland.—
Jenna Ebbers,
Kansas City Star,
12 May 2026
-
The thread packed with hints served as a playful nod to Taylor Swift's new sourdough obsession and her relationship with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.—
Paloma Chavez,
PEOPLE,
12 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Prefiguring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prefiguring. Accessed 13 May. 2026.
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