What does foretold mean?
Word: Foretold
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Foretold means said that something would happen before it actually happened. It is the past form of foretell.
Synonyms: forecast, prophesied
How do you spell foretold?
Syllables: fore - told
Tricky part: The first part is fore, with an e, meaning 'before'. It is not for as in forgive, and not four the number.
Watch out for: fortold, fourtold, foretolled
Memory tip: Fore means before, so foretold means said before it happened: keep the e of fore.
Foretold in a sentence
Example 1: The old fisherman foretold a storm when he saw the gulls flying inland.
Example 2: The astrologer had foretold that my cousin would travel abroad.
Example 3: Nobody foretold that our underdog team would lift the trophy.
Fun Fact
For centuries, Indian almanacs called panchangs have been used to foretell eclipses and the dates of festivals.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Spies
Choose the pair which has a spelling error:
a) foretell : foretelled
b) forgive : forgave
c) forbid : forbade
d) foresee : foresaw
Show answer
a) foretell : foretelled. Foretell changes its vowel in the past, just like tell and told.
Word Puzzle
Match the words with the correct options:
1. foretold 2. hurried 3. vanished a. predicted b. disappeared c. rushed
a) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a
b) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
c) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a
d) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
Show answer
b) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b. Find each word's partner in meaning: foretold goes with predicted, hurried with rushed, vanished with disappeared.
Sound Check
Which word does not rhyme with foretold?
a) controlled
b) patrolled
c) enrolled
d) world
Show answer
d) world. World has the 'ur' sound of bird; controlled, enrolled and patrolled end in the 'old' of foretold.
Jumble Tumble
Choose the correct sequence of the jumbled letters to form a meaningful word:
dlortefo 12345678
a) 46352781
b) 48315762
c) 73465821
d) 45783612
Show answer
c) 73465821. Taken in that order, the letters give the word for said in advance.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. The weather office foretold heavy rain, so the school ___.
a) planned a day at the beach
b) opened the swimming pool
c) moved sports day indoors
d) held a picnic on the field
Show answer
c) moved sports day indoors
2. Which sentence uses foretold correctly?
a) The old sailor foretold a calm sea for the next day.
b) We foretold the box with string before posting it.
c) He foretold up the stairs two at a time.
d) She foretold her lunch quickly and ran out to play.
Show answer
a) The old sailor foretold a calm sea for the next day.
