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:
That advantage existed because investors were willing to forego some interest income in return for the greater safety that U.S.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 3, 2026
The Wall Street Journal reported External link over the weekend that SpaceX would forego a Mars mission in 2026, focusing on the moon instead.
From Barron's ● Feb. 9, 2026
It’s remarkable how much future benefit people will forego for a little instant gratification.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 26, 2025
“Alternatively, noncitizens may choose not to appear and instead to forego their opportunity to pursue their claims for asylum or other relief from removal.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 25, 2025
But, reconciled by his success, he yet refused to forego the privilege of criticiz-ing this order.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
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
If his comedy can travel without him, if he can make money while foregoing lonely nights on the road, he can prioritize more important moments, like playing catch with his son after school.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2025
The foregoing should not be read as a call for movement building to the exclusion of reform work.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
But Miller’s refusal to bow out wasn’t a foregone conclusion, either.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026
If that makes the outcome seem like a foregone conclusion, it ain’t necessarily so, thanks to Labour’s laborious internal democratic process.
From Salon ● May 12, 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
“This started as a foregone conclusion. It didn’t look that way as we went forward. So, for our basketball team, the fact we didn’t give up makes it special. We fought.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2026
It was a foregone conclusion that Washington would be called out of retirement to head the force, but equally predictable that the aging general would delegate actual command to his former aide-de-camp.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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
But last month, after Thiessen’s stepmother and father, who are in their 70s, came down with covid, Thiessen, his wife and their children, ages 7 and 9, forewent testing.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 10, 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
Ay, and we encouraged frugality and thrift ... in the poor devils who forewent their tobacco.
From The Road by Jack London
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.
