Meaning & use
predict
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To say what you expect will happen in the future, using knowledge, evidence or a guess.
Grammar: Takes an object or clause: predict the outcome; predict that prices will rise.
Patterns
- predict something
- predict that something will happen
- predict how/when something will happen
Experts predict that the storm will reach land on Friday.
No one could have predicted the result of the election.
She predicted the exact date of the first snowfall.
verbtransitivetechnical
To work out in advance what a calculation, model or scientific rule says will occur.
Grammar: Used for theories, tests or models: the theory predicts a rise in temperature.
Patterns
- something predicts something
- the model predicts that something will happen
The model predicts a rise in sea level over the next century.
Newton's laws predict where the planet will be tomorrow.
The test can predict which students will need extra help.
Word forms
| third person singular | predicts |
|---|---|
| past tense | predicted |
| past participle | predicted |
| -ing form | predicting |
Common combinations
- predict the outcome
- It is hard to predict the outcome of the match.
- predict accurately
- Few forecasters predict the weather accurately.
- predict with confidence
- Nobody can predict with confidence how the market will move.
- confidently predict
- The coach confidently predicted a win.
- predict the future
- She claims she can predict the future.
- predicted to
- Sales are predicted to double next year.
Synonyms and how they differ
- forecast
- Forecast is usually based on data and used for weather or business, while predict can also be a plain guess.
- foretell
- Foretell is literary and suggests supernatural insight into the future.
- anticipate
- Anticipate means to expect and prepare for something, not just state what will happen.
- project
- Project is used for numbers extended from current data, such as costs or population.
Opposites
Word family
- prediction noun
- a statement about the future
- predictable adjective
- easy to guess ahead of time
- unpredictable adjective
- impossible to guess in advance
- predictor noun
- something that helps foretell an outcome
- predictably adverb
- as expected
Commonly confused: predict or predicate? predict or presume?
predict vs predicate
Predicate is the part of a sentence that says what the subject does, or to base something on a fact, and it differs from predict.
predict vs presume
Presume means to assume something is true now, while predict looks ahead to the future.
Practice
Which sentence uses predict correctly?
Choose one answer.
Predict looks forward to an event that has not happened yet. The other options use it for the past or for unrelated actions.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “predict”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.