prophesy
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to foretell or predict.
- Synonyms:
- prognosticate, augur
-
to indicate beforehand.
-
to declare or foretell by or as if by divine inspiration.
- Synonyms:
- divine
-
to utter in prophecy or as a prophet.
verb (used without object)
-
to make predictions.
-
to make inspired declarations of what is to come.
-
to speak as a mediator between God and humankind or in God's stead.
-
Archaic. to teach religious subjects.
verb
-
to reveal or foretell (something, esp a future event) by or as if by divine inspiration
-
archaic (intr) to give instruction in religious subjects
Commonly Confused
See prophecy.
Related Words
See predict.
Other Word Forms
- prophesiable adjective
- prophesier noun
- unprophesied adjective
Etymology
Origin of prophesy
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; verb use of variant of the noun prophecy (fully distinguished in form and meaning in the 18th century)
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.
Low and behold, right before Tyler, the Creator’s set, a bright orange blimp reading “Marty Supreme” began circling Dodger Stadium — just as Chalamet prophesied.
From Los Angeles Times
In another joint paper on “the illusion of validity,” that legendary duo posited that an apparent similarity between two unrelated events, a parchment-paper test, makes us partial to seemingly endless, overconfident prophesies of disaster.
From MarketWatch
When she was little, a neighbor heard her singing along to the radio and prophesied to Carol’s mother: “Someday she’ll be famous.”
But he was quickly disabused of any hope that his prophesies of financial doom would sway opponents.
From BBC
According to WTHR-TV in Indianapolis, Davis frequently had to stop and correct the behavior of Lewis, who at one point prophesied the end of the world.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
