PREORDAINED Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

preordained 1 of 2

adjective

as in destined

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preordained

2 of 2

verb

past tense of preordain

as in doomed

to determine the fate of in advance my wife and I are such soulmates, I'm convinced that our marriage was preordained

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of preordained

Verb

In The Radiance, the movements toward generosity can read as preordained. — Zain Khalid, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026 This mythologizing of a masculine, European (though crucially not British) version of Columbus supported burgeoning American ideals of Manifest Destiny (the idea that the United States was preordained to expand to the Pacific Ocean and beyond). — Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Sep. 2026 The script by Strippoli and Salvatore de Chirico shrewdly underplays that hand, instead cushioning the vanity factor in sincere parental concern for the children’s health, well-being and preordained path to success. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026 One day, during my visit, Cole used a step stool to access a small cubbyhole in a high corner of a bedroom wall—a sort of illogical nook that seemed preordained to house some private, upsetting object. — Laura Preston, New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2026 The literary poster child for the old type of soldier was Ernest Hemingway, who, like many men of his generation, had preordained military service as a child. — Literary Hub, 10 Aug. 2026 Experts say the outcome of the review seems preordained, although the matter is playing out in unexplored legal territory. — Rosanna Xia, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2026 Just because there is some constraint, doesn’t mean that your path has to be preordained. — Nir Bashan, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026 Given the slow start to his pro career, a spot at the World Cup, never mind the starting nod, was far from preordained. — Sean Gregory, Time, 10 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for preordained

Adjective

But Coker said school board members should be able to explore ideas, ask difficult questions, and evaluate options without every preliminary discussion being characterized as a predetermined course of action.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 Oct. 2026
The dual-arm robots use Sereact’s physical AI platform Cortex to identify, grasp and sort returned fashion items without requiring individual training for each product or a predetermined list of SKUs.

— Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of predetermined

Verb

But this time, his concert is destined to draw an even larger crowd.

— Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 14 Oct. 2026
The exec also served as a conduit between Sony and Netflix on a pay one output deal involving the streaming giant’s commitment to buy films that had been developed at Sony but that weren’t destined for theaters.

— Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of destined

Adjective

Her foray into television, which started in 2017, was not exactly foreordained.

— Tammy LaGorce, New York Times, 14 May 2024
With all of those movements, when the central issue was really crystallized as a choice between what is clearly right and just, and what is clearly unjust and wrong and deadly and dangerous, then the outcome becomes foreordained.

— Cara Buckley, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2024

Definition of foreordained

Verb

Some economists argued that government attempts to intervene in the economy were doomed to fail.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 13 Oct. 2026
Efforts to institute regulations at an international level are often doomed to fail, typically because of geopolitical and economic competition.

— Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of doomed

Adjective

His paintings and ceramics are layered and collage-like, driven by instinct rather than by a predestined end point.

— Marissa Gluck, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026
Hassouna and co-editor Denis LePaven pace the chronological patchwork of footage less as a story with a predestined shape, and more as shifting tiles of accumulating losses that the audience can traverse without being too overwhelmed.

— Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of predestined

Verb

He was ordained in 2018 after studies at the University of Dallas and Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
It will also be broadcast by Catholic media giant EWTN and livestreamed on the YouTube channel of the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, the diocese where Sheen was ordained.

— Aleja Hertzler-McCain, NPR, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of ordained

Adjective

The students who stepped forward when their teacher collapsed playing basketball in Michigan illustrate what becomes possible when CPR skills are taught before they are needed.

— Meng Yang, Time, 18 Oct. 2026
The film team had to come up with a strategy to capture as much as possible without interfering with Schnell’s challenge.

— Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of possible

Adjective

With their season and pursuit of history on the line, the Boys in Blue are slated to send Tyler Glasnow to the mound against Milwaukee, which hasn't yet announced a probable starter.

— Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
The recent spate of probable Russian attacks in the Black Sea is now disrupting shipping carrying Ukraine’s latest harvest to the rest of Europe, with some cargo being rerouted overland or through the River Danube, Politico reported.

— Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of probable

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“Preordained.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/preordained. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of preordained

adjective

verb

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