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forewarn

[fawr-wawrn, fohr-]
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verb (used with object)
  1. to warn in advance.
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Origin of forewarn

First recorded in 1300–50, forewarn is from the Middle English word forwarnen. See fore-, warn
Related formsfore·warn·er, nounfore·warn·ing·ly, adverbun·fore·warned, adjectivewell-fore·warned, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for forewarn on Thesaurus.com
caution, admonish, alert, prewarn, tip off.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for forewarning

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Some forewarning had been hers when she appealed to her lover for the possession of her children.

  • Then, as if penetrated by a forewarning, I moistened my finger in the water and drew a fish for him.

    Quo Vadis

    Henryk Sienkiewicz

  • It happened that we had a forewarning of what might be expected.

  • He joked about it then, as now, but there was the forewarning of death in it.

    Hawthorne and His Circle

    Julian Hawthorne

  • How should he use the weapon which Lettice had put into his hand by forewarning him?

    Name and Fame

    Adeline Sergeant

British Dictionary definitions for forewarning

forewarn

verb
  1. (tr) to warn beforehand
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Derived Formsforewarner, nounforewarningly, adverb
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

Word Origin and History for forewarning

forewarn

v.

early 14c., from fore- + warn. Related: Forewarned; forewarning.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper