1
as in to expect
to believe in the future occurrence of (something)
I anticipate that we'll be seeing you for New Year's
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to foresee
to realize or know about beforehand
I anticipated this unhelpful response
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of anticipate
Rather than the authoritarian spectacle that liberals had anticipated, the festivities seemed to be more a demonstration of political fatigue and civic apathy.
—
Seth Harp, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Successful leaders who thrive anticipate shifts, embrace new opportunities and continuously recalibrate their strategies to stay ahead of the curve.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Was this scheduled just before October so nobody could anticipate a good couples costume?
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2025
The mother, Keyani Perez, said her labor was much faster than anticipated, lasting only 40 minutes.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for anticipate
Seth Harp, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Successful leaders who thrive anticipate shifts, embrace new opportunities and continuously recalibrate their strategies to stay ahead of the curve.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Was this scheduled just before October so nobody could anticipate a good couples costume?
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2025
The mother, Keyani Perez, said her labor was much faster than anticipated, lasting only 40 minutes.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for anticipate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anticipate
Verb
-
Under the new Fish and Wildlife interim pintail harvest strategy, hunters in all four flyways are expected to have a three-pintail daily bag limit option for next year's 2026–'27 season based on this year's breeding population results.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
16 Sep. 2025
-
He’s expected to again advance out of the committee.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Thirteen members of the FOMC predicted 1 or 2 more rate cuts with only 4 members foreseeing no rate change.—
Paul Weinstein Jr,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Malthus may not have foreseen the developments that fueled human growth over the past two centuries.—
Roy Scranton,
JSTOR Daily,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Unfortunately, Samsung’s challenge is that while applying the fix is urgent, users must await their turn.—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Now, a shower is installed but awaiting an organized signup system.—
Sophie Carson,
jsonline.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Before all that happened, though, there was the eight-course dinner, which went totally fine as predicted.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Explore Fall, a website that provides resources and tools to track the changing colors of leaves, is predicting an earlier and quicker fall foliage peak for the millions of people looking to see this year's natural spectacle.—
Kyle Reiman,
ABC News,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Anticipate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anticipate. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share