fate

[feyt]

noun

1. something that unavoidably befalls a person; fortune; lot.

   It is always his fate to be left behind.

   Synonyms: luck, chance, kismet, karma

2. the universal principle or ultimate agency by which the order of things is presumably prescribed; the decreed cause of events; time.

   Fate decreed that they would never meet again.

3. that which is inevitably predetermined; destiny.

   Death is our ineluctable fate.

4. a prophetic declaration of what must be.

   The oracle pronounced their fate.

5. death, destruction, or ruin.

6. Classical Mythology.,  the Fates, the three goddesses of destiny, known to the Greeks as the Moerae and to the Romans as the Parcae.

verb (used with object)

fated, fating 

1. to predetermine, as by the decree of fate; destine (used in the passive).

   a person who was fated to be the savior of the country.

   Synonyms: preordain, foreordain

fate

/ feɪt /

noun

1. the ultimate agency that predetermines the course of events

2. the inevitable fortune that befalls a person or thing; destiny

3. the end or final result

4. a calamitous or unfavourable outcome or result; death, destruction, or downfall

verb

1. (tr; usually passive) to predetermine; doom

   he was fated to lose the game

Word History and Origins

Origin of fate¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, Middle French, from Latin fātum “what has been spoken, utterance, decree of fate, destiny,” originally neuter of fātus, past participle of fārī “to speak”

Word History and Origins

Origin of fate¹

C14: from Latin fātum oracular utterance, from fārī to speak

Idioms and Phrases

• seal one's fate
• tempt fate

Synonym Study

Fate, destiny, doom refer to the idea of a fortune, usually adverse, that is predetermined and inescapable. The three words are frequently interchangeable. Fate stresses the irrationality and impersonal character of events: It was Napoleon's fate to be exiled. The word is often lightly used, however: It was my fate to meet her that very afternoon. Destiny emphasizes the idea of an unalterable course of events, and is often used of a propitious fortune: It was his destiny to save his nation. Doom especially applies to the final ending, always unhappy or terrible, brought about by destiny or fate: He met his doom bravely.

Example Sentences

But if nothing changes, the fate of the next Gordie Howe Bridge will look just like the current one.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Deprivation cuts the other way: isolation is “agonizing,” Mr. Rein tells us, “one of the worst fates a human can experience.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

And, of course, the fate of U.S.-China trade talks remains both unknown and extremely risky heading into the expiration of the uneasy detente between Washington and Beijing on Nov. 10.

Read more on Barron's

It is thought that at least 26 hostages are deceased, with the fate of two others unknown.

Read more on BBC

At the same time, Google’s lawyers are working to convince federal judges determining the company’s fate that, in fact, AI poses a huge threat to its monopoly businesses.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• chance 
• circumstance 
• consequence 
• destiny 
• effect 
• future 
• issue 
• outcome