eventuate

verb

even·tu·ate i-ˈven-chə-ˌwāt

eventuated; eventuating

intransitive verb

: to come out finally : result, come about

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The Controversial History of Eventuate

Eventuate started life as an Americanism in the late 18th century, and was stigmatized in the 19th century. One British commentator called it "another horrible word, which is fast getting into our language through the provincial press." Other British grammarians, and even some Americans, agreed that it was horrible. Eventuate is less controversial these days, though its use is still regarded by the occasional critic as pompous, ponderous, and unnecessary. In any case, eventuate has a perfectly respectable history. It is derived from the Latin noun eventus ("event"), which in turn traces to the verb evenire, meaning "to happen."

Examples of eventuate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Sadly, despite years of effort and attempts, nothing has eventuated. —

New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2024 What eventuated was a product that’s easy to pick up and turn on and off, uncomplicated to use, and features Braille on the packaging. —

Maggie Zhou, refinery29.com, 23 Apr. 2024 Low-propensity voters tend to have their say on Election Day, so a drop-off could still eventuate. —

Naomi Lim, Washington Examiner, 3 Jan. 2021 These stories eventuate a better kind of amusement — not indulgence, but the sometimes discomfiting pleasure of being dazzled. —

Hermione Hoby, New York Times, 1 June 2018 Woodburn has captained Liverpool's Under-19 team in the UEFA Youth League this season, and will be hopeful the decision to keep him on Merseyside will eventuate into first team appearances. —

SI.com, 18 Jan. 2018 Following City's 2-1 triumph at Old Trafford earlier this month, United manager Jose Mourinho let his disdain at the visitors' celebrations known as a scuffle eventuated in the tunnel. —

SI.com, 23 Dec. 2017 Pacquiao and his camp had attempted to line up a higher-paying fight with Britain’s Amir Khan in the Middle East which never eventuated, stalling the negotiations for several months. —

Dennis Passa, The Denver Post, 9 Apr. 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'eventuate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.