- present participle of foreshadow.
foreshadowing
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of foreshadowing
First recorded in 1845–50; foreshadow ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. )
Explanation
Foreshadowing is an advance sign or warning of what is to come in the future. The author of a mystery novel might use foreshadowing in an early chapter of her book to give readers an inkling of an impending murder. When you want to let people know about an event that is yet to occur, you can use foreshadowing. Foreshadowing is used as a literary device to tease readers about plot turns that will occur later in the story. A fortune teller might use foreshadowing, warning that a short life line is a sign of some impending disaster.
Vocabulary lists containing foreshadowing
Power Prefix: fore-
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Literary Devices & Figures of Speech - Introductory
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The AP English Exam: Rhetorical and Literary Terms 3
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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.
Foreshadowing Top Of The Pops, the show highlighted each song's chart position, with the relevant number built into the staging; while a troupe of dancers called The Stargazers interpreted the lyrics.
From BBC • Nov. 25, 2022
Foreshadowing his later dedication to martial arts, Lee would keep crib notes of all 108 different cha-cha steps in his wallet so that he could obsessively memorize them.
From Salon • Dec. 30, 2021
Foreshadowing: hints of what is to come in the text.
From Textbooks • Dec. 21, 2021
Foreshadowing the looming threat, New Orleans was hit early Wednesday by thunderstorms that meteorologists said were associated with the building storm.
From Reuters • Jul. 10, 2019
It is a glimpse from worlds unseen—a light from the Invisible, Foreshadowing things the brighter yet to be.
From Lays from the West by Nicholl, M. A.
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.
