Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “foretell” come from?

Foretell comes from Middle English foretellen, composed of the prefix fore- and tellen, meaning to tell beforehand or predict.

foretell (English): To predict; to tell before it occurs; to...

Definitions

  1. To predict; to tell before it occurs; to...

Ancestry of “foretell”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishforetellen—

Words derived from “foretell”

  • foretelling
  • foreteller
  • foretelleth
  • foretellest
  • foretellable
Every word from Middle English foretellen →