self-fulfilling

American  

[self-fool-fil-ing] / ˈsɛlf fʊlˈfɪl ɪŋ /

adjective

1. characterized by or bringing about self-fulfillment.

2. happening or brought about as a result of being foretold, expected, or talked about.

   a self-fulfilling prophecy.

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self-fulfilling British  

adjective

1. (of an opinion or prediction) borne out because it is expected to be true or to happen

   a self-fulfilling prophecy

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Usage

What does self-fulfilling prophecy mean? A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that causes itself to be true due to the behavior (including the act of predicting it) of the believer. Self-fulling, here, means “brought about as a result of being foretold or talked about,” while prophecy refers to the prediction.

Etymology

Origin of self-fulfilling

First recorded in 1950–55

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

self-fulfilling

The problem, according to McKay, is that AI systems are trained on data that already contains human bias, and this can lead to self-fulfilling prophecies.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026

I’m mostly living the self-fulfilling prophecy of the nunnery, though I have recently made a Bumble profile.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

“This is where we find ourselves today: funding as a downstream consequence—a self-fulfilling prophecy among us VCs for VCs—of the trillion-dollar pink elephant everyone is chasing,” he wrote.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

"We need to scrutinise these companies much more or we are in danger of self-fulfilling prophecies," she says.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

“Delphine, do you know what a self-fulfilling prophecy is?”

From "P.S. Be Eleven" by Rita Williams-Garcia

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