forecast
Americanverb (used with object)
-
forecasts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
forecasted,
past participle, past
-
forecast,
past participle, past
-
forecasting
present participle
-
to predict (a future condition or occurrence); calculate in advance.
to forecast a heavy snowfall; to forecast lower interest rates.
- Synonyms:
- anticipate, foretell
-
to serve as a prediction of; foreshadow.
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to contrive or plan beforehand; prearrange.
- Synonyms:
- project
verb (used without object)
-
forecasts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
forecasted,
past participle, past
-
forecast,
past participle, past
-
forecasting
present participle
noun
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forecasts
plural
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a prediction, especially as to the weather.
-
a conjecture as to something in the future.
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the act, practice, or faculty of forecasting.
-
Archaic. foresight in planning.
- Synonyms:
- prescience, forethought
verb
-
to predict or calculate (weather, events, etc), in advance
-
(tr) to serve as an early indication of
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(tr) to plan in advance
noun
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a statement of probable future weather conditions calculated from meteorological data
-
a prophecy or prediction
-
the practice or power of forecasting
Synonym Usage
See predict.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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forecasternoun
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reforecastverb (used with object)
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forecastableadjective
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unforecastadjective
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unforecastedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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forecastsimple
-
forecastssimple
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have forecastperfect
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have forecastedperfect
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has forecastperfect
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has forecastedperfect
-
am forecastingprogressive
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are forecastingprogressive
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is forecastingprogressive
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have been forecastingperfect progressive
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has been forecastingperfect progressive
Past
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forecastsimple
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forecastedsimple
-
had forecastperfect
-
had forecastedperfect
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was forecastingprogressive
-
were forecastingprogressive
-
had been forecastingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of forecast
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English (verb) “to plan ahead of time”; see origin at fore-, cast ( def. )
Explanation
A forecast is a prediction of what will happen. If the weather forecast calls for sunny skies, consider leaving your umbrella at home. (But, since forecasts aren’t guaranteed to be right, don’t blame us if you get rained on.) While often used in the context of weather, forecast can also be used for other types of predictions such as those related to financial or political outcomes. Note that a forecast is typically a prediction made by experts. So, while a financial analyst might forecast fourth-quarter profits, your prediction about whether your friend will pay back the five dollars he owes you is more of a hunch than a forecast.
Vocabulary lists containing forecast
Power Prefix: fore-
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Vocabulary from the Introduction to "Reality is Broken" by Jane McGonigal
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Physical Geography - Introductory
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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:
The afternoon is forecast to be warm, with scattered fair-weather cloud across southern and central parts of the country, and only a little more cloud forecast for northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
The Bank of Korea is widely expected to raise its growth forecast at its policy meeting on Thursday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
This year’s is forecast to be $1.85 trillion.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026
The app may display that forecast with a partly cloudy icon for the region, which will be correct for 70 percent of the area, but not for the 30 percent that actually gets pouring rain.”
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
“Storm forecast for tonight!” said Uncle Vernon gleefully, clapping his hands together.
From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling
Latest forecasts from the Met Office suggest that these temperature anomalies could exceed 3C later this year as El Niño nears its peak.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
“Global weather forecasts are made using predictive models—huge mathematical systems with thousands of lines of code, run on supercomputers,” he said.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
Mike McPhaden, a senior scientist at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, had a similar estimate, telling AFP: "It's not inconceivable that 2027 may top out at 1.7C above preindustrial levels" if model forecasts bear out.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
The brokerage cuts its earnings forecasts for ComfortDelGro by 8.7% for 2026, 12.6% for 2027, and 11.4% for 2028.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
The weather forecasts warned of possible tornadoes that day.
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
That’s a level often viewed as fairly valued, although PEG ratios rely heavily on forecasted growth, which is based on Wall Street estimates and can be misleading at times.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
The report also highlights the steep increase in the number of Pip recipients in recent years and the forecasted rise in spending on the benefit.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
"The hype is definitely here for the World Cup, it'll be here until the World Cup ends," he forecasted.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
Economists have forecasted those pressures are delaying a strong recovery in single-family housing starts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026
Because if I didn’t beat Elliot in this, he would go on to the next level of the Academy, and I’d be left behind, waiting for whatever awful future the letter forecasted to come true.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Their conclusion: “Human-made forecasting is still the best way to go, and even that is still wrong.”
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
"We should be clear that this is an unprecedented event", said Prof Adam Scaife, head of long-range forecasting at the UK Met Office.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
He served from 2008 to 2014 as Mr. Putin’s deputy minister of economic development, overseeing forecasting, strategic planning and budgeting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
Ahead of the decision to hold off on the new tariffs, analysts had been forecasting that Trump would back down.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
They dodged trainees pouring out of forecasting labs, talking about their moon prophecies.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
