FORESEE (foresaw, foreseen)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected forms: foresaw    , foreseen   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does foresee mean? 

• FORESEE (verb)
  The verb FORESEE has 3 senses:

1. realize beforehand

2. picture to oneself; imagine possible

3. act in advance of; deal with ahead of time

  Familiarity information: FORESEE used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FORESEE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they foresee    ... he / she / it foresees   
Past simple: foresaw   
Past participle: foreseen   
-ing form: foreseeing   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Realize beforehand

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Synonyms:

anticipate; foreknow; foresee; previse

Hypernyms (to "foresee" is one way to...):

know (be aware of the truth of something; have a belief or faith in something; regard as true beyond any doubt)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sense 2

Meaning:

Picture to oneself; imagine possible

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Synonyms:

envision; foresee

Context example:

I cannot envision him as President

Hypernyms (to "foresee" is one way to...):

conceive of; envisage; ideate; imagine (form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sense 3

Meaning:

Act in advance of; deal with ahead of time

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Synonyms:

anticipate; counter; foresee; forestall

Hypernyms (to "foresee" is one way to...):

act; move (perform an action, or work out or perform (an action))

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

 Context examples 

The occasion would never be foreseen.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

I believe that he foresaw some danger, or else he would not have talked so.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

He would have some hot water before he began what he foresaw was to be a terrible journey to the ship.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Poor Mr. Woodhouse trembled as he sat, and, as Emma had foreseen, would scarcely be satisfied without their promising never to go beyond the shrubbery again.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

I cannot foresee any end to our troubles.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Also, the three days’ rest brought the trouble I had foreseen.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

His genius and ardour had seemed to foresee and to command his prosperous path.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

He had not foreseen this turn of affairs, and was not prepared for it.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

And the natural consequence is, as anybody but a baby might have foreseen, that he prowls and wanders.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Elizabeth could not refuse, though she foresaw little pleasure in the visit.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)