predispose
Americanverb (used with object)
-
predisposes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
predisposed,
past participle, past
-
predisposing
present participle
-
to give an inclination or tendency to beforehand; make susceptible.
Genetic factors may predispose human beings to certain metabolic diseases.
- Synonyms:
- prepare, prearrange
-
to render subject, susceptible, or liable.
The evidence predisposes him to public censure.
-
to dispose beforehand.
-
Archaic. to dispose of beforehand, as in a will, legacy, or the like.
verb (used without object)
-
predisposes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
predisposed,
past participle, past
-
predisposing
present participle
verb
-
to incline or make (someone) susceptible to something beforehand
-
law to dispose of (property, etc) beforehand; bequeath
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
predisposesimple
-
predisposessimple
-
have predisposedperfect
-
has predisposedperfect
-
am predisposingprogressive
-
are predisposingprogressive
-
is predisposingprogressive
-
have been predisposingperfect progressive
-
has been predisposingperfect progressive
Past
-
predisposedsimple
-
had predisposedperfect
-
was predisposingprogressive
-
were predisposingprogressive
-
had been predisposingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of predispose
Explanation
Predispose means to have a tendency toward something. Some people believe that just being born in Canada will predispose you to love ice hockey. Many situations or events can predispose you to have a particular reaction, opinion, or feeling. Being bitten by a dog as a child could predispose you to having a fear of dogs. Having ancestors with great athletic ability might predispose you to enjoy running. If you want to predispose your father to liking your new boyfriend, be sure to tell him about volunteering at the food bank and leave out the bits about his arrest and dropping out of school.
Vocabulary lists containing predispose
Looking For Alaska
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Gene
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Guns, Germs, and Steel
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Recognizing this, some oncologists have begun administering drugs with restraint rather than abandon, aiming to keep the cancer in check rather than creating conditions that predispose to the rapid growth of resistant cells.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
"The whole team undertakes a standardized warm-up that addresses a number of physical concerns that predispose our female athletes to ACLs," she said.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2025
Nothing in her environment would predispose her to cancer, except for being in close proximity to the fires.
From Slate ● Jan. 16, 2025
“But unfortunately, when it makes that change in cell type, there are genetic changes that predispose a patient to cancer.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2024
Attitudes such as these certainly predispose one to innumeracy.
From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos
Nor does it hurt that the extraordinary popularity of the Harry Potter movies predisposes much of the audience to sympathy and affection.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
This predisposes them to developing the disease but in itself is not symptomatic.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 22, 2024
"Pollutants make you more allergic in general and this can trigger eczema, being an allergic individual predisposes you to developing eczema compared with a non-allergic person."
From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2023
Few countries in the region even screen for the disease and give affected newborns penicillin as prophylaxis against the infections to which their condition predisposes them, says Ambroise Wonkam, a geneticist at Johns Hopkins University.
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 12, 2023
It is not necessary; but confidence in the result predisposes to a larger endowment of power in the séance of the occasion.
From Mysterious Psychic Forces An Account of the Author's Investigations in Psychical Research, Together with Those of Other European Savants by Camille Flammarion
When that fan base is predisposed to wanting to stick it to the man, it’s not a tough sell.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
Most had had previous, less severe incidents—or “micro concussions”—that while not enough to send them to a clinician, predisposed them to a bigger event, he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2025
What's more, With Love, Meghan was never going to change opinions of those who are already, for whatever reason, predisposed against her - just as her new podcast series is unlikely to.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2025
And to be fair, that’s not a bad courtroom strategy against an opponent who is almost pathologically predisposed to putting his foot in his mouth.
From Salon ● Mar. 1, 2025
With the secret and implacable labor of a small ant she predisposed the women of the village against the flightiness of their husbands, who were already preparing for the move.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Selenium itself is an oxidant, but in low doses it activates responses in a controlled manner, predisposing the body to better defense.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 30, 2023
“The difference is likely due to a combination of stress and inflammation, arising from predisposing factors and the way this virus biologically interacts with the cardiovascular system.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 26, 2022
Many species of Sorbus have a small population size, predisposing them to threatening events.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2021
“Climate change is predisposing the fuels into drier conditions,” Stephens said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2020
Was there anything about the Chinese environment predisposing toward Confucian philosophy and cultural conservatism, which may also have profoundly affected history?
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
