foreknew

foreknew

God foreknew the choices of His people.

Definition

Verb (past tense of foreknow) - To have knowledge of something before it happens; to know in advance. - Foreknew is the simple past tense form of the verb foreknow, which means to have prior knowledge or foresight of an event or fact.

Usage Examples
  • (She knew the result in advance.)
  • (The prophet had prior knowledge of the catastrophe.)
  • (No one had advance knowledge of the collapse.)
Advanced Usage
  • "to be foreknown": to be known beforehand, typically used in passive constructions.

    • The plan was foreknown by only a few trusted advisors. (Only a small group knew the plan in advance.)
  • "foreknew not": an archaic or poetic negative form meaning "did not know beforehand."

    • He foreknew not the sorrow that awaited him. (He did not anticipate the sadness.)
Variants and Related Words
  • Foreknow (v): the base form, meaning to know beforehand.

    • Only a clairvoyant can truly foreknow the future. (Only a psychic can know the future in advance.)
  • Foreknowledge (n): knowledge of something before it occurs; prescience.

    • His foreknowledge of the market crash saved him from financial ruin. (His advance knowledge protected him.)
  • Foreknown (adj/past participle): known in advance.

    • The outcome was foreknown by the scientists. (The result was known beforehand.)
Synonyms
  • Foresaw: past tense of foresee — to see or know something ahead of time.

    • She foresaw the difficulties and prepared accordingly. (She anticipated the problems.)
  • Anticipated: to expect or predict something.

    • They anticipated the storm and took shelter. (They expected the storm before it came.)
  • Presaged: to have a sign or warning of something in advance.

    • The dark clouds presaged the coming rain. (The clouds indicated rain before it arrived.)
Related Idioms
  • To have foreknowledge of: to be aware of something before it happens.

    • The spy had foreknowledge of the enemy's plans. (The spy knew the plans in advance.)
  • To know in advance: a common phrase meaning to have prior knowledge.

    • We knew in advance that the test would be difficult. (We had prior knowledge of the test's difficulty.)