be a foregone conclusion1 CERTAINLY/DEFINITELYto be certain to happen, even though it has not yet officially happened 是明摆着的结果 The outcome of the battle was a foregone conclusion. 战斗的结果早在预料之中。
2 CERTAINLY/DEFINITELYif something is a foregone conclusion, its result is certain, even though it has not happened yet 是预料中的结果;成为定局 The election result was a foregone conclusion. 选举结果已成定局。
be a foregone conclusion• But the outcome of the battle was a foregone conclusion.• Some commentators and businessmen have suggested that the successful privatization of the National Freight Corporation was a foregone conclusion.• For three more years, Masada continued to hold out, but its fall was a foregone conclusion.• They never had to plan their shared parenting; it was a foregone conclusion.• It is a foregone conclusion that the homosexual laws will not be reformed yet.• The result was a foregone conclusion.• But none of these is a foregone conclusion.• Do not be deterred from exercising your right of appeal by the belief that the outcome will be a foregone conclusion.