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prognosticate

[prog-nos-ti-keyt]
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verb (used with object), prog·nos·ti·cat·ed, prog·nos·ti·cat·ing.
  1. to forecast or predict (something future) from present indications or signs; prophesy.
  2. to foretoken; presage: birds prognosticating spring.
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verb (used without object), prog·nos·ti·cat·ed, prog·nos·ti·cat·ing.
  1. to make a forecast; prophesy.
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Origin of prognosticate

1375–1425; late Middle English < Medieval Latin prognōsticātus, past participle of prognōsticāre. See prognostic, -ate1
Related formsprog·nos·ti·ca·tive, prog·nos·ti·ca·to·ry [prog-nos-ti-kuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] /prɒgˈnɒs tɪ kəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjectiveprog·nos·ti·ca·tor, nounnon·prog·nos·ti·ca·tive, adjectiveun·prog·nos·ti·cat·ed, adjectiveun·prog·nos·ti·ca·tive, adjective

Synonyms

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1. foretell, foresee, project.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

soothsayerseerprophetdivinermediumvisionaryoracleaugurtelepathistfortune-teller

Examples from the Web for prognosticator

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Two suns shone in the sky, prognosticator of still deeper frost.

    The Conquest

    Eva Emery Dye

  • It seems to me that the examiner should be an exceedingly able diagnostician and prognosticator.

    Arteriosclerosis and Hypertension:

    Louis Marshall Warfield

  • The prognosticator in these cases is deceived, because he is solely directed by the order of his indices.

  • This pretty spotted little beetle was used formerly in the neighbourhood of Llanidloes as a prognosticator of the weather.

    Welsh Folk-Lore

    Elias Owen

  • A small sea-fowl which the natives of the Western Isles of Scotland trust in, as a prognosticator of the weather.

    The Sailor's Word-Book

    William Henry Smyth

British Dictionary definitions for prognosticator

prognosticate

verb
  1. to foretell (future events) according to present signs or indications; prophesy
  2. (tr) to foreshadow or portend
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Derived Formsprognostication, nounprognosticative, adjectiveprognosticator, noun

Word Origin

C16: from Medieval Latin prognōsticāre to predict
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 prognosticator

n.

1550s, agent noun in Latin form from prognosticate.

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prognosticate

v.

early 15c., a back-formation from prognostication and also from Medieval Latin prognosticatus, past participle of prognosticare (see prognostication). Related: Prognosticated; prognosticating.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
prognosticator in Medicine

prognosticate

(prŏg-nŏs′tĭ-kāt′)
v.
  1. To predict according to present indications or signs; foretell.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.