foregone conclusion
Already decided result
A foregone conclusion is an outcome regarded as inevitable or already determined before events unfold: The election was a foregone conclusion once the scandal broke.
The phrase suggests that deliberation or competition is merely formality—the result was never in doubt.
Originally from Shakespeare's *Othello*, where it meant a previous experience rather than an inevitable outcome.
- sure thingGuaranteed outcome or agreement
- inevitablenessCannot be avoided
- cinchGuaranteed easy thing
- safe betLikely winning wager
- done dealFinalized, irreversible agreement
certainty · guarantee · predictability · destined · par for the course · assured · fated · inescapable · fait accompli · sealed fate · shoo-in · determinism · dead cert · matter of course · presumption · surety · decided · lock
- fatedestiny, fate, kismet, Moira, fated
- inevitabilitiesdeath, mortality, taxes, fate, destiny
- literary idiomscatch-22, red herring, white whale, chapter and verse, by the book
- Assumptionsfalse assumption, stereotypes, generalizations, biases, prejudices
- beliefsbelief, beliefs, creed, creeds, faith
- Easy Thingseasy, simple, easy peasy, easy-peasy, easy as pie
foregone conclusionupset
Disturb, topple, or shock
surprise · shock · wild card · toss-up · surprise ending
foregone conclusionopen question
Unresolved matter for discussion
toss-up · up in the air · unknown quantity · coin flip · too close to call
include, conclusion, exclude, inclusive, concluded, inclusion, exclusion, preclude, concluding