prediction

Pronunciation

• IPA: /prɪˈdɪk.ʃən/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French prédiction and directly borrowed from Latin praedictiō (“a foretelling”),^[2][3][4] from praedīcere, to make known beforehand (see predict),^[2][4] from prae-, before, and dīcere, to say.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The act of foretelling future events: 1561 in the OED and Merriam-Webster, the 1560s in Etymonline.^[5][3][2]

Semantic evolution

A portent or omen is an obsolete sense of 1601.^[5] The Century Dictionary (1895) noted that prediction may or may not be inspired, and is most often used of foretelling events from scientific knowledge or experience.^[2] Compounds such as prediction value are from 1952.^[5]

Timeline

• 1561 – foretelling.^[5][3]
• 1601 – an omen (obsolete).^[5]
• 1952 – prediction value.^[5]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The act of predicting.
2. Something predicted; a forecast or prophecy.

Related words

• predict
• diction
• dictate
• verdict

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press