forecast
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to predict (a future condition or occurrence); calculate in advance.
to forecast a heavy snowfall; to forecast lower interest rates.
- Synonyms:
- anticipate, foretell
-
to serve as a prediction of; foreshadow.
-
to contrive or plan beforehand; prearrange.
- Synonyms:
- project
verb (used without object)
noun
-
a prediction, especially as to the weather.
-
a conjecture as to something in the future.
-
the act, practice, or faculty of forecasting.
-
Archaic. foresight in planning.
- Synonyms:
- prescience, forethought
verb
-
to predict or calculate (weather, events, etc), in advance
-
(tr) to serve as an early indication of
-
(tr) to plan in advance
noun
-
a statement of probable future weather conditions calculated from meteorological data
-
a prophecy or prediction
-
the practice or power of forecasting
Related Words
See predict.
Other Word Forms
- forecastable adjective
- forecaster noun
- reforecast verb (used with object)reforecast, reforecasted, reforecasting
- unforecast adjective
- unforecasted adjective
Etymology
Origin of forecast
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English (verb) “to plan ahead of time”; fore-, cast ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The German sector trades at 38 times forecast earnings, up from 20 times at the start of last year and far above the 15 times of the German market as a whole.
This includes not having suitable clothing and equipment, like crampons and an ice axe, not checking and fully understanding the weather forecast, like which wind speeds are too strong, and not navigating properly, he says.
From BBC
Even so, the result beat the median forecast for a 26% increase in a Wall Street Journal survey of nine economists.
According to the researchers, the results could influence how climate change forecasts and models are developed.
From Science Daily
Still, many economists say it’s hard to forecast the future in the Middle East and how any confrontation would impact oil prices.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
