a foregone conclusion

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a foregone conclusion (idiom, noun phrase)
/ə ˌfɔː.ɡɒn kənˈkluːʒən/ (UK)
/ə ˌfɔr.ɡɑːn kənˈkluːʒən/ (US)

Meanings

• An outcome that is certain to happen; inevitable result.
• A result that seems obvious to everyone even before it happens; predictable outcome.
• A conclusion formed or decided beforehand, often without fair consideration.

Synonyms: certainty; inevitability; sure thing; lock; shoo-in; cinch.

Example Sentences

1. Because the team had won every match, the championship was a foregone conclusion before the final game began.
2. With the polls so one-sided, reporters called the election a foregone conclusion long before voting ended.
3. After the judge’s early comments, the guilty verdict seemed a foregone conclusion even before the trial was over.

Origin and History

The phrase “a foregone conclusion” can be traced back to the early seventeenth century in England. It first gained recognition through the works of William Shakespeare, whose use of the expression gave it both literary weight and enduring popularity. Over time, the phrase shifted from a specific dramatic meaning to the broader sense we use today: an outcome seen as inevitable or already decided.

Shakespeare’s Use and First Printed Record

The earliest known appearance of “a foregone conclusion” is found in Act 3, Scene 3 of Shakespeare’s Othello. In this passage, the words are spoken in response to a supposed dream about adultery, where the phrase seems to mean that the act had already been decided or presumed to have taken place, rather than simply inevitable. Shakespeare’s lines read:

“But this denoted a foregone conclusion:
‘Tis a shrewd doubt, though it be but a dream.”

This usage is preserved in the 1622 quarto edition of Othello, printed in London for Thomas Walkley after its entry in the Stationers’ Register in October 1621. The quarto provides the first surviving printed record of the idiom.

Country of Origin

The evidence firmly establishes that “a foregone conclusion” originated in England. The phrase was coined in the linguistic and cultural environment of early modern London, where Othello was written, performed, and first printed.

Etymology of “Foregone”

The adjective “foregone” is derived from the verb “to forego,” meaning “to go before” or “to precede.” When paired with “conclusion,” the phrase originally carried the sense of a conclusion that had already gone before or had already been determined. This literal idea of something decided in advance gradually shifted into the figurative idiom meaning an inevitable or predictable result.

Evolution of Meaning

In Shakespeare’s time, “a foregone conclusion” could suggest something already established or assumed, often without direct evidence. Over the centuries, the phrase evolved into its modern idiomatic sense: an outcome viewed as certain before it happens. This broader interpretation spread through general English usage and has remained stable ever since.

Variants

• foregone conclusion (without the article)
• foregone conclusions (plural form)
• be a foregone conclusion / was a foregone conclusion (common usage patterns)

Important