foregone conclusion, a

Idioms  

1. An outcome regarded as inevitable, as in The victory was a foregone conclusion .

2. A conclusion formed in advance of argument or consideration, as in The jury was warned to consider all of the evidence and not base their decision on a foregone conclusion . This idiom probably was invented by Shakespeare ( Othello , 3:3) but scholars are not agreed as to his precise meaning. [c. 1600]

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Example Sentences

Bank boss Jerome Powell said last month that another cut at its December policy meeting was not a "foregone conclusion", a comment that has been echoed by a number of colleagues.

From Barron's

He speaks about a strong U.S.-India relationship as a foregone conclusion, a “defining chapter” that he and the Biden administration are already etching into history.

From Los Angeles Times

In the end, “Breaking” feels like a foregone conclusion: a dismal portrait of a system — and a someone — already irreparably broken.

From Washington Post

Maybe we’re too scrambled by hope to see a favorable forecast as anything but a foregone conclusion — a Nate accompli if you will — and too prone to disappointment to see an unlikely occurrence as anything but a system failure.

From Washington Post

That seemed to be a foregone conclusion a few weeks ago, before the Cavaliers fell back to the pack following road losses at Miami and Louisville, in addition to a nonconference loss at Notre Dame.

From Seattle Times