2 syllables: fore, seen. Stress on seen.
fawr-SEEN
/ˌfɔˈɹsin/
foreseen is pronounced fawr-SEEN (/ˌfɔˈɹsin/). It has two syllables (fore-seen), with the stress on "seen". Foreseen is the past participle of foresee, meaning predicted or anticipated beforehand. It describes events that, given current knowledge or patterns, are expected to occur in the future. In usage, it often appears in perfect aspect constructions or as an adjective meaning already anticipated. (2–4 sentences, 50–80 words).
Foreseen is the past participle of foresee, meaning predicted or anticipated beforehand. It describes events that, given current knowledge or patterns, are expected to occur in the future. In usage, it often appears in perfect aspect constructions or as an adjective meaning already anticipated. (2–4 sentences, 50–80 words)
"The storm was foreseen by meteorologists, so evacuations were planned in advance."
"She had a foreseen outcome and prepared accordingly."
"Because their actions were foreseen, the policy was adjusted before it took effect."
Say /fɔːrˈsiːn/ in US and UK; the first syllable contains the long, open-mid back rounded vowel /ɔː/ followed by /r/; the second syllable has the stressed /siːn/ with a long /iː/. Ensure the r is pronounced in rhotic accents if applicable, and avoid reducing the /r/ in non-rhotic varieties. Audio examples: compare with “foresee” /fɔːrˈsiː/ plus -n. (60–100 words)
Common mistakes include misplacing stress as in /ˈfɔːrsiːn/ or running the /r/ and /s/ together without a clear boundary, producing /fɔːrsiən/ or /fɔːsiːn/. Another error is shortening the second syllable to /siːn/ with an abrupt stop, rather than maintaining a smooth /siːn/; ensure you echo the long /iː/ in /siːn/. (60–100 words)
In US, UK, and AU, the primary variation is the rhoticity and vowel quality affecting the /ɔː/ and the presence of linking /r/ in some contexts. US often keeps a more pronounced /r/ with a longer /ɔː/ plus rhotic linking, UK tends toward a slightly shorter /ɔː/ with less pronounced linking in non-rhotic environments, and AU sits mid-range with clear /ɔː/ and light /r/ linking. (60–100 words)
Two main challenges: sustaining the long /ɔː/ vowel in the first syllable while quickly moving to /siːn/ in the second syllable, and ensuring the /r/ is articulated cleanly in rhotic varieties without delaying the onset of /siːn/. The cluster /rsi/ can trip you up if you don’t separate the consonant boundary—practice with minimal pairs and controlled tempo. (60–100 words)
Focus on a two-beat transition: /fɔːr/ on beat one, then a clean, elongated /siːn/ on beat two. Keep your jaw slightly more open for /ɔː/ and avoid tensing the lips; relax the tip of tongue for /r/ in rhotic speakers, then glide into the /s/ smoothly before /iːn/. This prevents a clipped or slurred second syllable.
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US: rhotic /r/ is pronounced; lengthened /ɔː/ is common; UK: non-rhotic or light /r/ in coda, vowel quality slightly shorter; AU: rhotic with clear /r/ in careful speech; keep /ɔː/ broad and /iːn/ steady. IPA references: US /fɔːˈsiːn/, UK /fɔːˈsiːn/, AU /fɔːˈsiːn/.
Foreseen originates from the verb foresee, which combines the Old English fore- (before, beforehand) with the verb sēon (to see) to form a compound meaning to see beforehand. The past participle form foreseen emerged in Middle English as foresee entered common usage in the 14th–15th centuries. The word retained its core sense of “to anticipate or predict” across centuries, migrating into legal, literary, and everyday usage. The form foreseen became standard in the perfect and passive constructions (have/has foreseen), while the noun foreseeability later developed in economic and legal discourse to describe the capacity to anticipate outcomes. Early attestations appear in law and religious writings where foreseen events were tied to divine providence or fate, and by the 1600s, foreseen was entrenched in narrative prose as a common past perfect form alongside foreshadowed. By the 19th and 20th centuries, foreseen’s usage broadened to secular contexts, including meteorology and risk assessment, reinforcing its sense of deliberate anticipation rather than mere guesswork, and it remains a precise term in formal writing today.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "foreseen" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "foreseen"
-een sounds
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