Etymograph

English

foreshow

Foreshow comes from Old English forescēawian ‘to foreshow, foresee’, from sċēawian ‘to watch or look at’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kewh₁-1‘to heed, look, feel, take note of’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skawwōną2‘to look, see, watch’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skauwōn2‘to look, see, watch’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċēawian3‘to watch or look at’
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150forescēawian4‘to foreshow, foresee’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foreschewen4
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1810foreshow4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *skawwōną
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old English sceawian
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Old English foresceawian
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English foreshow
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1810, Walter Scott, Canto II. The Island.: “Amid his senses' giddy wheel, / Did he not…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kewh₁-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *skawwōną‘to heed, look, feel, take note of’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skawwōnąWiktionary, Old English sceawian‘to look, see, watch’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skauwōnWiktionary, Old English sceawian‘to look, see, watch’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċēawianWiktionary, Old English foresceawian‘to watch or look at’
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150forescēawianWiktionary, English foreshow‘to foreshow, foresee’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foreschewenWiktionary, English foreshow
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1810foreshowWiktionary, English foreshow. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1810, Walter Scott, Canto II. The Island.: “Amid his senses' giddy wheel, / Did he not…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁- ‘to heed, look, feel, take note of’

cave, kudos, precaution, sheen, scone, 10 more

through Proto-Germanic *skawwōną ‘to look, see, watch’

showing, 5 more

through Proto-West Germanic *skauwōn ‘to look, see, watch’

shower, 5 more

through Old English sċēawian ‘to watch or look at’

shown, 4 more

Today it means

verb To show in advance; to foretell, predict.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “foreshow”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *skawwōną, Old English sceawian, Old English foresceawian. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁- / foreshow

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