MEANING
The belief that events or people’s destinies have already been decided, especially by God or fate.
Use it for
portraying fear that every choice has already been made; contrasting free choice with a fixed destiny; describing belief in an unavoidable course of events; distinguishing divine planning from an ordinary predictionNames the idea that a life’s course has already been settled, enabling a precise contrast with choice and contingency. Writing functions: Cosmic Horror fallback.
Words that belong together
- belief in predestination
- the doctrine of predestination
- predestination and free will
On the page
The repeated date made her fear predestination more than any threat in the letters.
The novel leaves open whether the prophecy proves predestination or merely encourages its own fulfillment.
Word forms
- Base
- predestination
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Usage notes
Usually uncountable: belief in predestination; the doctrine of predestination. No ordinary plural is needed. Predestined is a related form, not another entry in this task. Register: formal. Commonness: uncommon (dictionary-informed qualitative editorial estimate; not a measured frequency).
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