prefigure

• POS: Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: pre=fig=ure

CIDE DICTIONARY

prefigure, v. t. [F. préfigurer, or L. praefigurare, praefiguratum; prae before + figurare to figure. See Figure, and cf. Prefigurate.].

 To show, suggest, or announce, by antecedent types and similitudes; to foreshadow.  South.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

prefigure, v.tr.
1 represent beforehand by a figure or type.
2 imagine beforehand.

Derivative

prefiguration n. prefigurative adj. prefigurement n.

Etymology

ME f. eccl.L praefigurare (as PRAE-, FIGURE)

THESAURUS

prefigure

adumbrate, assume, augur, be afraid, believe, betoken, body forth, cast a horoscope, cast a nativity, conceive, conclude, consider, daresay, deduce, deem, demonstrate, divine, dope, dope out, dowse for water, dream, embody, exemplify, expect, fancy, feel, figure, forebode, forecast, foresee, foreshadow, foretell, foretoken, fortune-tell, gather, grant, guess, hariolate, hint, illustrate, image, imagine, impersonate, incarnate, indicate, infer, let, let be, make a prediction, make a prognosis, make a prophecy, mean, mirror, opine, personate, personify, point to, predict, preindicate, presage, presign, presignal, presignify, presume, presuppose, presurmise, pretypify, prognosticate, project, prophesy, provisionally accept, read palms, read tea leaves, read the future, realize, reckon, reflect, repute, say, shadow, shadow forth, signify, soothsay, speculate, spell, suppose, surmise, suspect, take, take for, take for granted, take it, take to be, tell fortunes, tell the future, think, token, typify, understand, vaticinate

ROGET THESAURUS

prefigure

Prediction

VB predict, prognosticate, prophesy, vaticinate, divine, foretell, soothsay, augurate, tell fortunes, cast a horoscope, cast a nativity, advise, forewarn, presage, augur, bode, abode, forebode, foretoken, betoken, prefigure, preshow, portend, foreshow, foreshadow, shadow forth, typify, pretypify, ominate, signify, point to, usher in, herald, premise, announce, lower, hold out expectation, raise expectation, excite expectation, excite hope, bid fair, promise, lead one to expect, be the precursor, extrapolate, project.