fate
Americannoun
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fates
plural
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something that unavoidably befalls a person; fortune; lot.
It is always his fate to be left behind.
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the universal principle or ultimate agency by which the order of things is presumably prescribed; the decreed cause of events; time.
Fate decreed that they would never meet again.
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that which is inevitably predetermined; destiny.
Death is our ineluctable fate.
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a prophetic declaration of what must be.
The oracle pronounced their fate.
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death, destruction, or ruin.
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Classical Mythology. the Fates, the three goddesses of destiny, known to the Greeks as the Moerae and to the Romans as the Parcae.
verb (used with object)
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fates,
present (3rd person singular)
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fated,
past participle, past
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fating
present participle
noun
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the ultimate agency that predetermines the course of events
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the inevitable fortune that befalls a person or thing; destiny
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the end or final result
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a calamitous or unfavourable outcome or result; death, destruction, or downfall
verb
Synonym Usage
Fate, destiny, doom refer to the idea of a fortune, usually adverse, that is predetermined and inescapable. The three words are frequently interchangeable. Fate stresses the irrationality and impersonal character of events: It was Napoleon's fate to be exiled. The word is often lightly used, however: It was my fate to meet her that very afternoon. Destiny emphasizes the idea of an unalterable course of events, and is often used of a propitious fortune: It was his destiny to save his nation. Doom especially applies to the final ending, always unhappy or terrible, brought about by destiny or fate: He met his doom bravely.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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fatesimple
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fatessimple
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have fatedperfect
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has fatedperfect
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am fatingprogressive
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are fatingprogressive
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is fatingprogressive
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have been fatingperfect progressive
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has been fatingperfect progressive
Past
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fatedsimple
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had fatedperfect
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was fatingprogressive
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were fatingprogressive
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had been fatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fate
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, Middle French, from Latin fātum “what has been spoken, utterance, decree of fate, destiny,” originally neuter of fātus, past participle of fārī “to speak”
Explanation
Is it your fate to win a fortune in the lottery and retire young? Better hope so. Fate is like destiny, so that means winning the lottery would be an inevitable outcome. The word fate traces back to the Latin word fatum, meaning “that which has been spoken,” and something that's your fate is a done deal, not open to revision. If you feel like something is your fate, you feel it's beyond your control. Fate is often referred to directly, as if it were a supernatural power: “fate tore us apart." It can also describe your lot in life, like if it's your fate to take over the family farm.
Vocabulary lists containing fate
The Diary of Anne Frank
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"The Monkey's Paw," Vocabulary from the short story
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act III
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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.
See Examples For:
Concerns about aquaculture extend far beyond the fate of the oceans.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
Argentine prosecutors began presenting their closing arguments Thursday at the trial over the death of football icon Diego Maradona, arguing that he was abandoned to his fate by a "chaotic" medical team.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
But legally, their fate is far more complicated.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
But for a few twists of fate, she could be any of us.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026
As soon as the commander had taken her seat with the panel of professors who would decide my fate, I turned and glared at Regan.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
I’m taking issue with the widespread belief that the long-term fates of a country’s economy and stock market are closely tied to the size of its population.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
The remarkable finds have sparked hope that some families could finally discover the fates of their ancestors, more than 80 years on from the war.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
That's the no-man's land they're living in now, frantically looking at the respective fates of Senegal and Ecuador, Curacao and Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia and others.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
Arina Hooks, 45, an assistant vice president for a financial services company in Atlanta, viewed the reunion as a unique chance to help family members seize control of their economic fates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
I crept back into bed and lay there, contemplating the terrible sorts of fates that seem possible only in the small hours, until matins rang.
From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood
Their fated romance is the final piece of the puzzle, the pièce de résistance that helps De Palma’s film rise above the other thrillers of its ilk.
From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026
But he was fated to spend more than two-thirds of his career in opposition, and only briefly achieved cabinet rank.
From BBC ● Jun. 14, 2026
Mr. Goodspeed presents a compelling argument that recessions are not fated, and that they are becoming shorter and less frequent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
If you lack investment discipline and don’t have a plan to handle your winners and losers, you are likely fated to lose more than you should—and to earn less than you could.
From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026
“The item was fated never to reach its destination. At some point on the journey, it went...missing.”
From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook
This was a wolf on the defensive, fating a pack which had turned upon his leadership.
From Destiny by Charles Neville Buck
Now was his hope a great bulk of will fating Its wish to being, now felt he he was blind In some point of his seen wish undefined.
From Antinous: A Poem by Fernando António Nogueira Pessoa
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.
