preordain
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Verb: 1. To decide or determine (an event or outcome) in advance; to foreordain: To decree or settle something before it happens, often implying a divine or fateful power.
Usage
- This verb is typically used in formal or religious contexts to describe events believed to be fixed by fate, destiny, or a higher power.
- It is often used in the passive voice (e.g., "was preordained") or followed by a clause beginning with "that."
- The subject is usually an impersonal force (e.g., fate, destiny, God, the universe) or a person/entity with supreme authority.
Examples
- Active Voice:
- Some believe that a divine power preordains the course of our lives.
- The ancient prophecy seemed to preordain the king's downfall.
- Passive Voice:
- Their meeting felt preordained, as if it was meant to happen.
- The outcome of the battle was preordained by the strategic advantages of one side.
Advanced Usage
- "to preordain that...": Used to introduce the specific event or outcome that was decided beforehand.
- The council preordained that the eldest son would inherit the throne.
Variants and Related Words
- Preordained (adjective): Describes something that has been decided in advance.
- He accepted his preordained fate with calm dignity.
- Preordination (noun): The act of preordaining or the state of being preordained.
- The doctrine of preordination is a complex theological concept.
Synonyms
- Predestine: To determine beforehand, especially by divine will.
- Foreordain: To appoint or decree beforehand; very similar in meaning and often used interchangeably.
- Predetermine: To establish or decide in advance, often through planning or logic rather than fate.
- Decree: To order something authoritatively, which can happen before the fact.
Related Phrases
- A preordained conclusion/path/outcome: A fixed and inevitable end, route, or result.
- The story followed a preordained path to its tragic conclusion.
Verb
- foreordain or determine beforehand