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aforethought

American  
[uh-fawr-thawt, uh-fohr-] / əˈfɔrˌθɔt, əˈfoʊr- /

adjective

  1. thought of previously; premeditated (usually used predicatively).

    with malice aforethought.


noun

  1. premeditation; forethought.

aforethought British  
/ əˈfɔːˌθɔːt /

adjective

  1. (immediately postpositive) premeditated (esp in the phrase malice aforethought )

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of aforethought

First recorded in 1575–85; afore + thought 2

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:

Everything he has done in his whole life has been with malice aforethought.

From Salon Jun. 1, 2022

As Regina George, the reigning mean girl with malice aforethought, Taylor Louderman is a contender for lead actress in a musical.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 7, 2018

Armando Iannucci’s absurdist comedy reveals this in an extremely loose manner of speaking, with malice aforethought, straight-faced glee and formidable sharpshooting that occasionally misfires.

From The Wall Street Journal Mar. 8, 2018

There is now a colorable case that they did just that, in at least one instance with malice aforethought.

From Washington Post Dec. 19, 2016

One of the men came up to Sewall, and with malice aforethought led the subject to Sewall's participation in the breaking of the horses.

From Roosevelt in the Bad Lands by Hermann Hagedorn

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