forego
1 Americanverb (used with or without object)
verb (used with object)
verb
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of forego
before 900; Middle English forgon, forgan, Old English foregān. See fore-, go 1
Explanation
If you forego something, you choose to give it up. If you forego dessert after dinner, you are skipping dessert. The verb forego (also spelled forgo) literally means “to go by.” In common usage it means “to abstain” or “do without.” You might forego smoking cigarettes as a New Year’s resolution. Forego can also mean “to precede,” or “go before.” This verb is often seen in its past participle form, foregone, in the phrase “foregone conclusion,” meaning a predetermined conclusion.
Vocabulary lists containing forego
The Constitution of the United States
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Vocabulary from the Constitution of the United States
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Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress
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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:
But that’s not all: You would also forego anywhere from $30,000 to $50,000 in lost returns over the next 10 years, depending on how well the stock market performs over that period.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 27, 2026
Some companies have pointed to the difficulty of complying with SEC rules as a reason to forego an IPO.
From Barron's ● Apr. 21, 2026
Honnold has also, at times, been a somewhat polarizing figure in the climbing world, with some criticizing his decision to forego ropes and other protective equipment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 23, 2026
It’s remarkable how much future benefit people will forego for a little instant gratification.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 26, 2025
But forego, which means “go before,” has an e, as do its cousins foregone and foregoing. forward.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
The bigger issue is that investors who stuck with staples, foregoing bigger gains in hopes they would provide a smoother ride, have been sorely mistaken.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
You are foregoing any increases in the stock market over the term of the annuity — but also hedging your bets against a severe downturn in the market.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 9, 2026
He agreed with Secretary Vance that to oppose it “would be foregoing an option that we could exercise in the event a peaceful solution is not in the offing.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2025
About 750,000 employees are currently foregoing their regular pay as the shutdown nears the end of its first week.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2025
The foregoing investigation into the nature of the idea of Texas is put down as a prelude to my journeying across Texas with Charley in Rocinante.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
But Miller’s refusal to bow out wasn’t a foregone conclusion, either.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026
Growing up in the San Fernando Valley in the ’70s and ’80s, it was a foregone conclusion I’d get married one day and have a family.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026
In his telling, every meeting packs a punchline, conclusions are never foregone and suspense is rarely more than a page or two away.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 17, 2026
Andrew Gilruth, chief executive of the Moorland Association, which represents landowners in upland areas in England and Wales, claimed the government's backing for the project suggested the go-ahead was "already a foregone conclusion".
From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026
It’s hardly a foregone conclusion that this is a good strategy for survival on the savannah.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
While Hopkins and many of her generation forewent having children, she notes that women today show up for job interviews pregnant, take family leave and still get tenure.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 28, 2023
The former Rainier Beach star played at Yakima Valley College after graduating high school, but forewent a Division I career due to eligibility concerns and eventually joined the G League.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 25, 2022
The antipasti here are a must: During my most recent lunch, I forewent the tempting array of crudi for a delicious plate of grilled octopus and artichoke.
From New York Times ● May 16, 2017
I’d read birth stories, for instance, from women who forewent the epidural and bragged that their children were consequently “so aware” and scored “perfect 10′s” on the Apgar.
From Salon ● May 7, 2013
He accepted a prose ideal, let himself go blind of many sympathies by disuse; and if he were young and witty, or beautiful, wilfully forewent these advantages.
From Virginibus Puerisque and Other Papers by Robert Louis Stevenson
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.
