forecast
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to predict (a future condition or occurrence); calculate in advance.
to forecast a heavy snowfall; to forecast lower interest rates.
- Synonyms:
- anticipate, foretell
-
to serve as a prediction of; foreshadow.
-
to contrive or plan beforehand; prearrange.
- Synonyms:
- project
verb (used without object)
noun
-
a prediction, especially as to the weather.
-
a conjecture as to something in the future.
-
the act, practice, or faculty of forecasting.
-
Archaic. foresight in planning.
- Synonyms:
- prescience, forethought
verb
-
to predict or calculate (weather, events, etc), in advance
-
(tr) to serve as an early indication of
-
(tr) to plan in advance
noun
-
a statement of probable future weather conditions calculated from meteorological data
-
a prophecy or prediction
-
the practice or power of forecasting
Synonym Usage
See predict.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
forecasternoun
-
reforecastverb (used with object)
-
forecastableadjective
-
unforecastadjective
-
unforecastedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
forecastsimple
-
forecastssimple
-
have forecastperfect
-
have forecastedperfect
-
has forecastperfect
-
has forecastedperfect
-
am forecastingprogressive
-
are forecastingprogressive
-
is forecastingprogressive
-
have been forecastingperfect progressive
-
has been forecastingperfect progressive
Past
-
forecastsimple
-
forecastedsimple
-
had forecastperfect
-
had forecastedperfect
-
was forecastingprogressive
-
were forecastingprogressive
-
had been forecastingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of forecast
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English (verb) “to plan ahead of time”; see origin at fore-, cast ( def. )
Explanation
A forecast is a prediction of what will happen. If the weather forecast calls for sunny skies, consider leaving your umbrella at home. (But, since forecasts aren’t guaranteed to be right, don’t blame us if you get rained on.) While often used in the context of weather, forecast can also be used for other types of predictions such as those related to financial or political outcomes. Note that a forecast is typically a prediction made by experts. So, while a financial analyst might forecast fourth-quarter profits, your prediction about whether your friend will pay back the five dollars he owes you is more of a hunch than a forecast.
Vocabulary lists containing forecast
Power Prefix: fore-
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Vocabulary from the Introduction to "Reality is Broken" by Jane McGonigal
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Physical Geography - Introductory
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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:
He said the proposed four-slot forecast - including a "dry hours" indicator - was backed by more than 80% of the attractions surveyed.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
GE Vernova is forecast to post 17.9% revenue growth and 69.3% earnings growth.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
But here is a look at where we stand now with the forecast:
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Economists project the price index of personal-consumption expenditures excluding food and energy, which Fed officials track closely, to rise 3.2% in 2026, up from a forecast of 2.9% in April.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
I rather dwelt on this part of the forecast, while our good ship made time, bound outward down the wind for the strange island of Seirenes.
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
Even S&P’s consensus earnings forecasts have this problem.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
Predicting the weather is always tricky, with even the most solid forecasts sometimes not living up to the hype.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Emanuel’s colleague Stan Shipley expects companies to beat earnings-per-share forecasts by 7% this quarter, which is more than double the rate companies beat earnings pre-pandemic.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
AI spending and profit forecasts have driven the stock market higher this year, led by semiconductor stocks.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 12, 2026
So the citizens of Oxford read the weather forecasts in the newspaper, and enjoyed the pale sun on their faces, and began to put their sandbags away.
From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman
The report also highlights the steep increase in the number of Pip recipients in recent years and the forecasted rise in spending on the benefit.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
Meta has forecasted capital expenditures to reach between $125 billion and $145 billion for the year -- more than double the company's 2025 outlay.
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
Organic sales are forecasted to rise between 3% to 4%, with a 100-basis-point adjusted gross margin expansion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
The company expects full-year net sales to fall 0.5% to 1.5%, with organic sales forecasted to rise 3% to 4%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
In the decade following the catastrophic eruption of Mount St. Helens, scientists accurately forecasted fourteen subsequent eruptions to within days or weeks.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
The results could have important implications for climate forecasting.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
Analysts aren’t yet forecasting a slowdown, but questions about the spending trajectory are sure to loom large as big tech companies report quarterly earnings later this month.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
Currently many forecasting models show that the hot spell could persist into the middle of July - although unlikely to reach the record breaking temperatures we saw in June.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Weather services are forecasting another round of hot weather this weekend, after record high temperatures in late June that led to excess deaths, overwhelmed hospitals and closed schools.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
Against his bleak forecasting is set my mother’s cheerfulness, in retrospect profoundly willed.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
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.
