predict
- 01 B1 Intermediate
to say that an event will happen in the future.
to state that a specific event will happen in the future based on current knowledge or reasoning.
Simple“It is difficult to predict the weather more than a few days in advance.”
In context“Economists failed to predict the sudden market crash despite several warning signs in the housing sector.”
UsageOften followed by a noun phrase or a 'that' clause.
PitfallThe weather man predicted about a storm. The weather man predicted a storm.The verb 'predict' is transitive and takes a direct object; do not use the preposition 'about'.
SynonymsAntonymsrecollectreview - 02 C2 Proficiency
to aim a weapon at a moving target by calculating where it will be.
to direct a ranged weapon against a target using a predictor device to calculate lead and elevation.
Simple“The system was designed to predict the path of incoming missiles.”
In context“Advanced fire-control systems are required to predict the trajectory of supersonic aircraft with sufficient accuracy for interception.”
UsageUsed primarily in technical military contexts regarding ballistics.
Usage predicted position · predicts a chance · accurately predict
Early 17th century, from Latin praedīcō (“to mention beforehand”) (perfect passive participle praedictus), from prae- (“before”) + dīcō (“to say”). Equivalent to Germanic forespeak, foretell, and foresay.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.