prognostic
Americanadjective
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of or relating to prognosis.
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predictive of something in the future.
prognostic signs and symbols.
noun
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a forecast or prediction.
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an omen or portent; sign.
adjective
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of, relating to, or serving as a prognosis
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foretelling or predicting
noun
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med any symptom or sign used in making a prognosis
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a sign or forecast of some future occurrence
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of prognostic
First recorded in 1375–1425; (for the adjective) late Middle English pronostik, from Medieval Latin prognōsticus, from Greek prognōstikós “of foreknowledge”; equivalent to pro- 2 + gnostic; noun derivative of the adjective
Explanation
A prognostic is like a sneak peek into the future, offering clues or predictions about what might happen next, especially in medicine or weather forecasting. In medicine, doctors often talk about prognostic factors, which are signs or symptoms that help predict how a patient's illness will progress. Similarly, in weather forecasting, certain cloud formations can be prognostic of an approaching storm. Coming from the Greek word prognōstikos, meaning "foreknowing," this term is used to offer insight into future events, helping people anticipate and prepare for what may come.
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.
According to the team, there are predictive, prognostic and diagnostic AI models and solutions that are becoming available for health care practitioners, but how they are used varies widely at different institutions.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 14, 2024
Mack has found Cronin’s messages increasingly resonating the deeper he goes into his first college season based on their prognostic prowess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2024
In addition to differences in their diuretic response, the patient subgroups also had meaningfully different clinical outcomes, highlighting the prognostic utility of the phenogrouping approach.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 30, 2024
She had a mastectomy, and there was no evidence of cancer at the time of her surgery — a great prognostic sign, Dr. Carey said.
From New York Times ● Jul. 23, 2022
The coincidence of any event and its prognostic, though it might have been ten to one that it would happen, is received as evidence of their connexion, which it would be impiety to laugh at!
From A Morning's Walk from London to Kew by Richard Phillips
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.
