Trivia Time

Which TV series was called "prescient" by The Hollywood Reporter for seeming to predict the future?

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prescient

American  

[presh-uhnt, -ee-uhnt, pree-shuhnt, -shee-uhnt] / ˈprɛʃ ənt, -i ənt, ˈpri ʃənt, -ʃi ənt /

adjective

1. 

   having prescience, or knowledge of things or events before they exist or happen; having foresight.

   The prescient economist was one of the few to see the financial collapse coming.

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Other Word Forms

• nonprescient
  adjective
• unprescient
  adjective
• nonpresciently
  adverb
• presciently
  adverb
• unpresciently
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of prescient

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Old French, from Latin praesciēns (stem praescient- ), present participle of praescīre “to know beforehand,” equivalent to prae- “before” + scīre “to know”; cf. pre- ( def. ); see science ( def. )

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Explanation

To be prescient is to have foresight or foreknowledge. We can use this word to describe people themselves, or what they say or do at a given moment. You probably know that the Latin prefix pre- means "before," so you might be able to figure out that the word prescient, from the verb praescire, means to "know beforehand." People like economists, sports commentators, and political analysts often get tagged with this word, because it's part of their job to sift through the data and make predictions — and sometimes they get it right. And when they're not just lucky, we might say they're prescient.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prescient

The chief market strategist and his team, who provide market tools and research for institutional and retail investors, have made some prescient market calls since the firm’s 2015 start.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

While the prediction proved prescient, Musk’s investment has changed the calculus.

From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026

This included prescient pieces ahead of their time, like the video-enabled AT&T Picturephone, and those that would never come to pass, such as the RCA Whirlpool Miracle Kitchen.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Yale Law professor Reva Siegel laid out this fact in a renowned law review article months after the decision came down, and her observation has only grown more prescient with time.

From Slate ● Aug. 3, 2026

Altogether, the abstract was, in the words of Caltech astrophysicist Kip S. Thorne, "one of the most prescient documents in the history of physics and astronomy."

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

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Related Words

• farsighted

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