verb

prophesy

PRO-fih-seye

verb

To predict what will happen, especially by claiming divine or special insight.

"The old woman prophesied that the drought would end within a year."

"He prophesied disaster if the plan went ahead."

How to Use Prophesy

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishTo foretell the future, often with a tone of divine authority or grave certainty.

Common mistake

Spelled and pronounced differently from the noun "prophecy" — this is one of English's trickier noun/verb pairs.

Easily confused with

prophecy →

prophesied past tense, prophesies singular

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From Middle English prophecien, partly from prophecie and partly from Old French prophecier — the verb form of "prophecy."

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