foreshadow

/fɔːˈʃædəʊ/

//fɔːˈʃædəʊ// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"foreshadow" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“foreshadow” is uncommon English (frequency #60,099 among 2,507 “F” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#60,099
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To suggest (someone or something) in advance; to prefigure, to presage.

Corpus desk

Index EN-foreshadow · foreshadow · English

foreshadow · rank #60,099 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #60,099
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH foosball

Nearest frequency peer: foosball (-2 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “foreshadow”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “foreshadow” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for foreshadow
PropertyValue
Headwordforeshadow
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/fɔːˈʃædəʊ/
Letters10
Frequency rank#60,099
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “foreshadow” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).foreshadowfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “foosball” (#60,097), “Gabbard” (#60,104), “Floridian” (#60,093). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “foreshadow” is #60,099. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

foreshadow is uncommon English at frequency #60,099 among 2,507 “F” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /fɔːˈʃædəʊ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

foreshadow has no tracked misspelling variants, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: The verb is derived from fore- (prefix meaning ‘before with respect to time, earlier’) + shadow (“to shade, cloud, or darken”, verb). The noun is derived from fore- + shadow (“faint and imperfect representation”, noun), probably modelled after the verb whic… The correct English form is foreshadow, spelled F-O-R-E-S-H-A-D-O-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    To suggest (someone or something) in advance; to prefigure, to presage.
  2. 2
    Of a person: to have an intuition or premonition about (something); to forebode.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how foreshadow appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. [T]he ceremonies commaunded in the lawe, did foreſhadowe Chriſt.
  2. [T]hat the excellency and efficacy of this [Jesus's] death and passion might appear, it was by manifold types foreshadowed, and in divers prophecies foretold.

Etymology

The verb is derived from fore- (prefix meaning ‘before with respect to time, earlier’) + shadow (“to shade, cloud, or darken”, verb). The noun is derived from fore- + shadow (“faint and imperfect representation”, noun), probably modelled after the verb which is attested earlier.

This word in other languages

agorar(Español)augurer(Français)andeuten(Deutsch)pressagiar(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "foreshadow"?
"foreshadow" is spelled F-O-R-E-S-H-A-D-O-W. The IPA pronunciation is /fɔːˈʃædəʊ/.
What does "foreshadow" mean?
As a verb, "foreshadow" means: To suggest (someone or something) in advance; to prefigure, to presage.
How do you pronounce "foreshadow"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "foreshadow" is /fɔːˈʃædəʊ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "foreshadow"?
The verb is derived from fore- (prefix meaning ‘before with respect to time, earlier’) + shadow (“to shade, cloud, or darken”, verb). The noun is derived from fore- + shadow (“faint and imperfect representation”, noun), probably modelled after the... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "foreshadow", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

exhalation#60,073Ecclestone#60,046houseguest#60,164hyphenated#60,168

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list