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:
But many Serbs continued to revere a military commander who painted himself as a "simple man" whom fate had chosen to protect his people.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
However, the emergence of Aleksandar Pavlovic, a Munich-born midfielder and Bayern academy graduate, eventually sealed Goretzka's fate.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
“Through whatever peculiar forces of fate, I have found myself amongst them.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
The ink, real and digital, being spilled over the Sussexes return to the U.K. is proof that the public remains very much invested in the state and fate of the British royal family.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
Of course, I have never used a weapon anyway, so having one wouldn’t have changed my fate.
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
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
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
But while both are promising young actors, they do not succeed in bringing sufficient feeling to the jolting roller coaster of their characters’ fates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Aiello expects more of its kind will suffer similar fates if nothing is done.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
Hadn’t I seen the villagers on The Mountain succumb to their fates all my life?
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
The prophecy also claims that the fated twins have the power to command daemons, supernatural beings with unearthly abilities.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 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
Strout seems to be asking similar questions: How much of our existence is fixed or fated?
From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2026
What we know and they don’t quite realize yet is that these young’uns are themselves fated to love each other.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
In the dreams of others, she was as a ghost, fated to never be seen.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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
This was a wolf on the defensive, fating a pack which had turned upon his leadership.
From Destiny by Charles Neville Buck
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.
