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preordain

American  
[pree-awr-deyn] / ˌpri ɔrˈdeɪn /

verb (used with object)

  1. to ordain beforehand; foreordain.


preordain British  
/ ˌpriːɔːdɪˈneɪʃən, ˌpriːɔːˈdeɪn /

verb

  1. (tr) to ordain, decree, or appoint beforehand

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • preordination noun
  • unpreordained adjective

Etymology

Origin of preordain

First recorded in 1525–35; pre- + ordain

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.

That uncertainty mirrors the circumstances that once faced Khamenei, whose rise to the top job was hardly preordained.

From Los Angeles Times

“It will be a struggle over who holds the center of gravity inside the organization, and that result is not preordained.”

From Los Angeles Times

A most recent example comes from Ilia Malinin, the American figure skater whose hopes for an individual gold medal in the Olympics, which had been regarded as a preordained inevitability evaporated in a mistake-laden routine.

From Los Angeles Times

The decision overall gives a sense that the investigators’ conclusion was preordained.

From The Wall Street Journal

But this weekend defied the notion that only a few schools were preordained to contend.

From The Wall Street Journal