Thesaurus results for FORESEE

Q: How is the word 'foresee' different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of foresee are anticipate , divine , and foreknow . While all these words mean "to know beforehand," foresee implies nothing about how the knowledge is derived and may apply to ordinary reasoning and experience. // economists should have foreseen the recession

Q: When could 'anticipate' be used to replace 'foresee'?

Although the words anticipate and foresee have much in common, anticipate implies taking action about or responding emotionally to something before it happens. // the waiter anticipated our every need

Q: How are the words 'divine' and 'foresee' related?

Divine adds to foresee the suggestion of exceptional wisdom or discernment. // was able to divine Europe's rapid recovery from the war

Q: When is it sensible to use 'foreknow' instead of 'foresee'?

The synonyms foreknow and foresee are sometimes interchangeable, but foreknow usually implies supernatural assistance, as through revelation. // if only we could foreknow our own destinies

foresee

verb

fȯr-ˈsē

Definition of foresee

as in to anticipate

to realize or know about beforehand a freak accident that no one could possibly have foreseen

Synonyms & Similar Words

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How is the word foresee different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of foresee are anticipate, divine, and foreknow. While all these words mean "to know beforehand," foresee implies nothing about how the knowledge is derived and may apply to ordinary reasoning and experience.

economists should have foreseen the recession

When could anticipate be used to replace foresee?

Although the words anticipate and foresee have much in common, anticipate implies taking action about or responding emotionally to something before it happens.

the waiter anticipated our every need

How are the words divine and foresee related?

Divine adds to foresee the suggestion of exceptional wisdom or discernment.

was able to divine Europe's rapid recovery from the war

When is it sensible to use foreknow instead of foresee?

The synonyms foreknow and foresee are sometimes interchangeable, but foreknow usually implies supernatural assistance, as through revelation.

if only we could foreknow our own destinies

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of foresee No one could’ve foreseen the unobtrusively great career that Muncy has carved out for himself, specifically over the past nine seasons in Los Angeles since getting called up in 2018. — Joaquin Ruiz, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2026 Last month, Semafor reported that Amazon’s sustainability chief foresees a multi-year uptick in the company’s carbon footprint. — Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2026 To be fair, a number of the calamities should have been foreseen, probably. — Brian Grubb, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026 Nate Davis does the honors again, foreseeing the winners of all 272 regular-season games to propose win-loss records for all 32 teams. — Jim Reineking, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for foresee

Recent Examples of Synonyms for foresee

anticipate

Verb

The arch will disturb the sightline between more landmarks than anticipated, the report said.

— Matthew Daly, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026
Reliable, independent government reporting is an important part of the information infrastructure businesses use to understand labor supply, anticipate change and make workforce decisions.

— Sheila Callaham, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of anticipate

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foresaw

foresee

foreseeable

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“Foresee.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foresee. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of foresee

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