forestall
- forestall
forestall (
v.) late 14c. (implied in
forestalling), "
to lie in wait for;" also "
to intercept goods before they reach public markets and buy them privately" (formerly a crime; mid-14c. in this sense in Anglo-French), from
O.E. noun
foresteall "
intervention, hindrance (of justice); an ambush, a waylaying,"
lit. "
a standing before (someone)," from
FORE- (
Cf. fore-) "
before" +
steall "
standing position" (see
STALL (
Cf. stall) (
n.1)). Modern sense of "
to anticipate and delay" is from 1580s. Related:
Forestalled;
forestalling.
Etymology dictionary.
2014.
:
Look at other dictionaries:
Forestall — Fore*stall , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Forestalled}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Forestalling}.] [OE. forstallen to stop, to obstruct; to stop (goods) on the way to the market by buying them beforehand, from forstal obstruction, AS. forsteal, foresteall, prop.,… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
forestall — I verb act in advance, antevertere, anticipate, arrest, avert, avoid, await, be armed, be forewarned, bring to a standstill, cancel, censor, check, counteract, deter, disallow, enjoin, estop, filibuster, forbid, forfend, frustrate, halt, hinder,… … Law dictionary
forestall — *prevent, anticipate Analogous words: ward, avert, *prevent, preclude, obviate: *frustrate, thwart, foil, circumvent Contrasted words: court, woo, *invite: further, forward, *advance, promote … New Dictionary of Synonyms
forestall — ► VERB 1) prevent or obstruct (something anticipated) by taking advance action. 2) anticipate and prevent the action of. DERIVATIVES forestaller noun forestalment noun. ORIGIN from Old English, «an ambush» … English terms dictionary
forestall — [fôr stôl′] vt. [ME forestallen < forestal, ambush < OE foresteall: see FORE & STALL2] 1. to prevent or hinder by doing something ahead of time 2. to act in advance of; get ahead of; anticipate 3. to interfere with the trading in (a market) … English World dictionary
forestall — UK [fɔː(r)ˈstɔːl] / US [fɔrˈstɔl] verb [transitive] Word forms forestall : present tense I/you/we/they forestall he/she/it forestalls present participle forestalling past tense forestalled past participle forestalled to prevent something from… … English dictionary
forestall — [[t]fɔː(r)stɔ͟ːl[/t]] forestalls, forestalling, forestalled VERB If you forestall someone, you realize what they are likely to do and prevent them from doing it. [V n] O Leary made to open the door, but Bunbury forestalled him by laying a hand on … English dictionary
forestall — forestaller, n. forestallment, forestalment, n. /fohr stawl , fawr /, v.t. 1. to prevent, hinder, or thwart by action in advance: to forestall a riot by deploying police. 2. to act beforehand with or get ahead of; anticipate. 3. to buy up (goods) … Universalium
forestall — verb Forestall is used with these nouns as the object: ↑criticism … Collocations dictionary
forestall — fore|stall [fo:ˈsto:l US fo:rˈsto:l] v [T] formal [: Old English; Origin: foresteallan to put in front, ambush ] to prevent something from happening or prevent someone from doing something by doing something first ▪ a measure intended to… … Dictionary of contemporary English
