To sentence or condemn something or someone to failure or a bad fate before it actually happens.
From 'fore-' (before) + 'doom' (judgment, fate, or ruin from Old English 'dom'). The word combines the concept of advance judgment with an inevitable bad outcome, creating a sense of pre-determined catastrophe.
Shakespeare and Greek tragedy writers loved this word because it captures the essence of dramatic irony—we watch characters who are already 'foredoomed' by the author's plan, helpless to change their fate.
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