forestall
English
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forestall¹
- /fɔː(ɹ)ˈstɔːl/
Rhymes with -ɔːl
Where it comes from
From Middle English forestallen (“to forestall, intercept, ambush, way-lay”), from forestalle (“a forestalling, interception”), from Old English foresteall (“intervention, hindrance of justice, ambush”), from fore- (“ahead of, before”) + steall (“position”), equivalent to fore- + stall.
verb forestalls · forestalling · forestalled
- To prevent, delay or hinder something by taking precautionary or anticipatory measures; to avert. Fred forestalled disaster by his prompt action.
- To preclude or bar from happening, render impossible. In French, an aspired h forestalls elision.
- To purchase the complete supply of a good, particularly foodstuffs, in order to charge a monopoly price.
- To anticipate, to act foreseeingly. What need a man forestall his date of grief, / And run to meet what he would most avoid?
- To deprive (with of). All the better; may / This night forestall him of the coming day!
- To obstruct or stop up, as a road; to stop the passage of a highway; to intercept on the road, as goods on the way to market.
forestall²
- /ˈfɔː(ɹ).stɔːl/
Where it comes from
From Middle English forstal, from Old English foresteall (“an intervention, hindrance (of justice), ambush, assault, offence of waylaying on the highway, fine for such an offence, resistance, opposition”), equivalent to fore- + stall.
noun forestalls · foresteal · forsteal · forestal
- An ambush; plot; an interception; waylaying; rescue.
- Something situated or placed in front.
Translations
Every language
verb to prevent
| Español | prevenir |
|---|---|
| हिन्दी | निवारण nivāraṇ |
| Français | empêcher, prévenir |
| Deutsch | verhindern, unterbinden |
| Italiano | prevenire |
| Ελληνικά | αποσόβηση aposóvisi |
| Русский | предотвраща́ть predotvraščátʹ |
verb to anticipate
| Français | anticiper |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | zuvorkommen, vorwegnehmen |
| Русский | предвосхища́ть predvosxiščátʹ, предваря́ть predvarjátʹ |
Talk about this word "forestall." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/forestall. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. forestall. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/forestall "forestall." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/forestall.Cite this
@misc{forestall_2026,
title = {forestall},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/forestall},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
