foretoken

foretoken

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English foretokne, fortacne, from Old English foretācn, foretācen (“foretoken, presage, prognostic, prodigy, sign, wonder”), equivalent to fore- +‎ token. Cognate with Dutch voorteken, German Low German Vörteken, German Vorzeichen.

Noun

foretoken (plural foretokens)

1. A prognostic; a premonitory sign; warning or presentiment.
   • 1590 Philip Sidney, The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia, Book II, ch. 10:

     Therefore know you Gentlemen (to whom from my harte I wish that it may not proue ominous foretoke[n] of misfortune to haue mette with such a miser as I am) that whatsoeuer my sonne (ô God, that trueth binds me to reproch him with the name of my sonne) hath said, is true.

Etymology 2

From Middle English *foretoknen, fortaknen, from Old English foretācnian (“to foreshow”).

Verb

foretoken (third-person singular simple present foretokens, present participle foretokening, simple past and past participle foretokened)

1. (transitive) To betoken beforehand; prognosticate; foreshadow; give warning of; presage.

Derived terms

• foretokening