predetermine
Americanverb (used with object)
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predetermines,
present (3rd person singular)
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predetermined,
past participle, past
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predetermining
present participle
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to settle or decide in advance.
He had predetermined his answer to the offer.
-
to ordain in advance; predestine.
She believed that God had predetermined her sorrow.
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to direct or impel; influence strongly.
His sympathy for poor people predetermined his choice of a career.
verb
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to determine beforehand
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to influence or incline towards an opinion beforehand; bias
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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predeterminesimple
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predeterminessimple
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have predeterminedperfect
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has predeterminedperfect
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am predeterminingprogressive
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are predeterminingprogressive
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is predeterminingprogressive
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have been predeterminingperfect progressive
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has been predeterminingperfect progressive
Past
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predeterminedsimple
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had predeterminedperfect
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was predeterminingprogressive
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were predeterminingprogressive
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had been predeterminingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of predetermine
Explanation
The verb predetermine means "determine in advance," like when you predetermine how much money you will spend on your friend's birthday present to make shopping easier. Predetermine comes from the Latin word praedeterminare, from prae, meaning “beforehand,” and determinare, meaning “limit, settle.” When you predetermine things, such as who will bring the food and music to a party, things run more smoothly than if you left it to chance. Another meaning of the word isn't so positive — if the organizers of a contest predetermine that their friend will win, this isn't fair to the other participants.
Vocabulary lists containing predetermine
Content Summary G.1: Principles of Geography
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Invisible Man
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: pre-
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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:
"There has to be concessions made by all sides. We're not going to predetermine what those are."
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2025
“I believe it’s also an important principle that the speaker not predetermine the outcome of that, or dictate objectives or benchmarks,” he told reporters.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 23, 2023
They have taken a similar tone in the wake of the indictment, but suggest that their colleagues should not predetermine Bragg’s motives before launching investigations.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 31, 2023
If hidden variables predetermine the results of the measurements, Alice and Bob can’t win every round.
From Science Magazine ● Jul. 20, 2022
Although current technology allows STSs to predetermine a timeprint, spatial scientists have not yet developed technology to select specific geographic landing destinations outside of the STM coordinates.
From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly
"At the Japan Trench, the geologic layering basically predetermines where the fault will form," said study co-author Patrick Fulton, an associate professor in Cornell University's Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026
This system predetermines a player’s compensation based on their draft position.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
It wasn’t a factor for his rookie deal because the collective bargaining agreement predetermines the money in each draft slot.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 26, 2022
In its call to suspend time, the music carries the potential to press pause on the punishing velocity that attends disaster, that robs our attention and predetermines a fixed future.
From New York Times ● Apr. 14, 2022
It has interested itself in bringing to light that in the very procedure of science which, because it predetermines what nature shall be, cannot be included within nature.
From The Approach to Philosophy by Perry, Ralph Barton
Other weeks, a predetermined number of decisions is enough.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026
A put option gives the owner the right to sell at a certain price after a predetermined period of time.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
These vehicles are not fully autonomous, but independently follow a predetermined route.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2026
Pro wrestling is a realm where a man named John Cena plays a character named John Cena; the match outcomes are predetermined, but the personal stakes are huge.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026
They appear to have some extra quality that we call ‘life’, or ‘intelligence’ but are in fact simply performing predetermined routines, like the cock on the Strasbourg Cathedral clock.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
The rule directs employers to consider six criteria for determining whether a worker is an employee or a contractor, without predetermining whether one outweighs the other.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 21, 2024
Hoarding and hiding information relevant to such differences, which amounts to predetermining a verdict of “guilty as charged,” violates basic principles of fair play and gives rise to justified resentment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 22, 2018
The Perennial Philosophy with its essential axioms defined by Aldous Huxley: Any event in any part of the universe has as its predetermining conditions all previous events in all parts of the universe.
From New York Times ● Jan. 17, 2017
“Trying to do too much. Over-dribbling, ball-sticking, predetermining - no matter what the defense was going to do, and we just get in trouble like that.”
From Washington Times ● Nov. 25, 2014
Predeterminā′tion, act of predetermining, or state of being predetermined; Predeter′minism, determinism.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various
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.
