foreshadowing
fore·sha·dow·ing/fɔɹˈʃædoʊɪŋ/noun, verb
foreshadowing is spelled F-O-R-E-S-H-A-D-O-W-I-N-G: 13 letters and 4 syllables (fore·sha·dow·ing). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 38,863rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, foreshadowing means “Synonym of foreshadow (“a suggestion of something in advance”); specifically (usually uncountable, literature, narratology), a literary device…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of foreshadowing is foreshadowings.
How many letters and syllables are in foreshadowing?
| Letters | 13: F-O-R-E-S-H-A-D-O-W-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: fore·sha·dow·ing |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 38,863rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is foreshadowing?
Foreshadowing appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 38,863rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce foreshadowing?
- UK /(ˌ)fɔːˈʃædəʊɪŋ/
- UK /fə-/
- US /fɔɹˈʃædoʊɪŋ/
Foreshadowing has 4 syllables, split fore·sha·dow·ing in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of foreshadowing
- foreshadowings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does foreshadowing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Synonym of foreshadow (“a suggestion of something in advance”); specifically (usually uncountable, literature, narratology), a literary device whereby an author drops hints or symbolic representations of plot developments to come later in the story.
The roses blooming before Rose herself bloomed was excellent foreshadowing.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of foreshadow
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Foreshadowing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense literary device whereby an author drops hints or symbolic representations of plo:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | augure, présage |
| German | Vorahnung |
| Portuguese | augúrio, presságio |
| Spanish | agüero, augurio, prefiguración, premostración, presagio |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does foreshadowing come from?
From foreshadow (verb) + -ing (suffix forming nouns denoting the act of doing something, an action, or the embodiment of an action; or forming present participles of verbs).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).