predestine
Americanverb (used with object)
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predestines,
present (3rd person singular)
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predestined,
past participle, past
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predestining
present participle
verb
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to foreordain; determine beforehand
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theol (of God) to decree from eternity (any event, esp the final salvation of individuals)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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predestinesimple
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predestinessimple
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have predestinedperfect
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has predestinedperfect
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am predestiningprogressive
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are predestiningprogressive
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is predestiningprogressive
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have been predestiningperfect progressive
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has been predestiningperfect progressive
Past
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predestinedsimple
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had predestinedperfect
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was predestiningprogressive
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were predestiningprogressive
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had been predestiningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of predestine
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English predestinen, from Latin praedestināre; see pre-, destine
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:
Genes do not predestine one individual to complete fewer years of schooling than another or one individual to score higher on a cognitive performance test than another.
From Scientific American ● May 26, 2022
V. predestine, preordain, predetermine, premeditate, resolve, concert; resolve beforehand, predesignate.
From Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases by Peter Mark Roget
“But to whom dost thou predestine the honor, holiness?”
From The Pharaoh and the Priest An Historical Novel of Ancient Egypt by Alexander Glovatski
"And what dost thou predestine to me?" inquired Vatinius.
From Quo Vadis: a narrative of the time of Nero by Jeremiah Curtin
Therefore now He is able not to predestine him.
From Summa Theologica, Part I (Prima Pars) From the Complete American Edition by Saint Thomas Aquinas
Essentially, The Light and the Dark is a thesis novel designed to prove that a man's nature predestines his end.
From Time Magazine Archive
But neither of these things can be said of God when He predestines.
From Summa Theologica, Part I (Prima Pars) From the Complete American Edition by Saint Thomas Aquinas
Therefore, predestination is in the one who predestines, and not in the predestined.
From Summa Theologica, Part I (Prima Pars) From the Complete American Edition by Saint Thomas Aquinas
I answer that, Predestination is not anything in the predestined; but only in the person who predestines.
From Summa Theologica, Part I (Prima Pars) From the Complete American Edition by Saint Thomas Aquinas
The characters’ fate is predestined by cat-and-mouse conventions, and there are no big surprises when watching the parts come together.
From Salon ● Mar. 29, 2026
"The programme emphasises that the genetic insights revealed in the films shed light on Hitler, but they don't tell us he was biologically predestined to behave in a particular way."
From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025
Whereas his documentary films crackle thanks to his unpredictable interactions with his subjects, “The Damned” cannot help but feel slightly overdetermined, the outcomes predestined rather than organically unearthed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2025
Still, there is no convincing some siblings who insist their birth order has predestined their role in the family.
From New York Times ● Apr. 15, 2024
Pablo de Pablo’s lot in life was simple and predestined.
From "Clayton Byrd Goes Underground" by Rita Williams-Garcia
During the Reformation, John Calvin asserted that hard-earned material success was a sign of God's predestining grace, thus solidifying the religious significance of work.
From Time Magazine Archive
In China, according to Dr. Dennys, the man in the moon is called Yue-lao, and he is believed to hold in his hands the power of predestining marriages.
From Storyology Essays in Folk-Lore, Sea-Lore, and Plant-Lore by Benjamin Taylor
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.
