fore-

See also: fore, Fore, fóre, foré, forè, fôre, före, főre, and 'fore

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English fore-, from Old English fore-, from Proto-West Germanic *forē-, from Proto-Germanic *fura-, *furai- (“before, in front of, for”), from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“before, formerly; through, throughout”).

Akin to Old Saxon and Old High German fora-, Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌰- (faura-) (see 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌰 (faura)), Dutch voor- (“fore-”).

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fɔː/
(General American) IPA^(key): /fɔɹ/
(rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger) IPA^(key): /fo(ː)ɹ/
(non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger) IPA^(key): /foə/
Audio (US): (file)
Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)
Homophones: four; for (horse–hoarse merger)

Prefix

fore-

Before with respect to time; earlier.
2. Before: the root is happening earlier in time.
  foreshadow is to occur beforehand, forewarn is to warn beforehand, forechosen is chosen beforehand
4. The early stage of the root time period
  foredawn is the time just before dawn, foreday is the morning or afternoon, foreyear is the earlier part of the year
6. Directly or immediately preceding in time.
  forebirth is that which precedes birth, foreking is a preceding king, forehammer is a large sledge which strikes right before a smaller one
Before with respect to position: front, ahead, leading, anterior.
2. Positioned at or near the front.
  forebooth is a booth positioned near the front, foregear is any gear located in a front or forward position, forehew is to hew in front
4. (nautical) The fore of a ship.
  forecabin is a cabin located toward the front of a vessel, forebridge is a raised platform or pilothouse at the front of the bridge, foreboom is the boom of the foremast
6. Anterior: the frontal part of a body.
  forebrain is the anterior part of the brain, forehoof is a front hoof, foregear is armour for the front of the body
8. Outer: the leading, outward portion of a wave or effort; or a distal part of a body.
  forebeam is the leading portion of a remote signal from a moving source, forefront is the leading position or edge, forebreast is the furthest part of a mine where the mining is actively happening, forearm is the part of the arm between the wrist and the elbow
10. Forepart: the front part of an object or area.
  forebody is the forepart of a vehicle, forecourt is the front part of the court in racket sports, forehand is all of the part of a horse which is before the rider
12. Near, close to, adjacent in position.
  foredune is a kind of dune ridge that runs parallel to the shore of a body of water, foreland is the zone adjacent to a mountain chain where material eroded from it is deposited, forby is near, beside, or close to
14. Nearest: the part of the root which is nearest/closest.
  forebeach is the area of beach nearest the water's edge; the foreshore or intertidal zone, forefield is the nearest part of a field (as of view or of combat), forend is part of a rifle, underneath the barrel, where it is supported by the hand
Forward in direction.
2. Forward in temporal direction, anticipating.
  foredawn is to anticipate dawning, foreglimpse is a glimpse of the future, forecast is an estimation of a future condition
4. Forward in spatial direction.
  forehearth is the forward extension of the hearth of a blast furnace, forebite is a condition where the front teeth are set too far forward in the mouth, foregaze is to gaze forward
6. Outward in spatial direction.
  forecry is to cry forth, forehand is a stroke in which the palm of the hand faces the direction of the stroke, foreleader is one who leads others by example
Before with respect to order or rank: first, prior, superior, ahead.
2. Previous or earlier in order or sequence.
  foredescribed is described earlier in the same document, forebook is a prelude to a book or series of books, forebelief is a previous belief
4. First in order or sequence.
  forebell is the first of a series of bells, forefinger is the index (first) finger, foredeal is the first place
6. Greater in rank, superior
  forehand is superiority or advantage, forechoice is a motive which is in agreement with correct desire, forby is superior
8. Prominent, most important, foremost or greatest in rank
  forecolour is any colour which stands out among others, forehand is the chief or most important part, foreground is the software application a user is currently interacting with
10. Ancestor, ancestral
  forebear is an ancestor, forefather is ancestor, fore-elder is an ancestor

Usage notes

Some terms prefixed with for- (“far, very”) have alternative spellings beginning with fore-, though they do not derive from fore- (they do not mean “before”); examples include foreshame, foreslack, foreslow. Conversely, some terms prefixed with fore- have alternative spellings beginning with for-, such as forbear; the form with fore- is usually preferred to avoid ambiguity, with the conspicuous exception of forward/forwards. In some cases analogous words with both prefixes are found, as in forego (“go before”) vs. forgo (“do without”), forebear (“ancestor”) vs. forbear (“restrain oneself”), and forespeak (“speak before, foretell”) vs. forspeak (“speak ill of; curse; charm, bewitch”).^[1] The prefixes might be distantly related (from Proto-Indo-European), but are distinct in English.

Synonyms

(in front of): pre-, ante-
(beforehand): pre-, ante-

Antonyms

(antonym(s) of “in front of”): post-
(antonym(s) of “beforehand”): after-, post-

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with fore-

terms derived from beforehand

terms derived from anticipating

terms derived from front

terms derived from nautical

terms derived from anterior

terms derived from outer

terms derived from forepart

terms derived from previous

terms derived from forwards

terms derived from outward

terms derived from first

terms derived from greater

terms derived from chief

terms derived from ancestor

terms derived from near

terms derived from nearest

terms derived from early

terms derived from preceding

Etymology 2

Prefix

fore-

Used to indicate error, exclusion, or inadequacy; Alternative form of for-.
forelay is to waylay

Derived words

English terms prefixed with fore-

terms derived from exception

Etymology 3

"Occurring only in words adopted from French, as forcatch v., forfeit n., forprise n., represents Old French for-, fors-, identical with fors adv. (modern French hors) outside, out."^[2]

Prefix

fore-

Alternative form of for-: outside, out.
foreclose is to shut out

Derived words

English terms prefixed with fore-

terms derived from out

References

^ Fore- or for-?, OxfordWords
^ Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “for- (prefix3),” September 2023, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/8923913950.

Anagrams

Ofer, OFer, froe, o-fer, ofer, Freo, Fero, orfe

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *forē-, from Proto-Germanic *furai-.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfo.re/ (as a nominal prefix)
IPA^(key): /fo.re/ (as a verbal prefix)

Prefix

fore-

before, in front of, pro-
‎fore- + ‎cwide → ‎forecwide (“introduction, heading; prophecy”)

‎fore- + ‎manian → ‎foremanian (“to forewarn, admonish”)

‎fore- + ‎mǣrlīċ → ‎foremǣrlīċ (“eminent, foreboding”)

‎fore- + ‎rīm → ‎forerīm (“prologue”)

‎fore- + ‎cnēoris → ‎forecnēoris (“progeny”)

‎fore- + ‎frēfrend → ‎forefrēfrend (“proconsul”)

‎fore- + ‎costiġan → ‎forecostigan (“to profane”)

‎fore- + ‎ġehāt → ‎foreġehāt (“vow”)

‎fore- + ‎mearcung → ‎foremearcung (“title, chapter”)
first, prime, occupying a prominent position
‎fore- + ‎seld → ‎foreseld (“first seat”)
very, supremely, foremost
‎fore- + ‎maniġ → ‎foremaniġ (“very many”)

‎fore- + ‎mihtiġ → ‎foremihtiġ (“most mighty”)

Derived terms

Old English terms prefixed with fore-

Descendants

Middle English: fore-
- English: fore-

[1] Fore- or for-?, OxfordWords

[oed-for3-2] Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “for- (prefix3),” September 2023, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/8923913950.

[1]

[2]