fore·ground
ˈfȯr-ˌgrau̇nd 
1
: the part of a scene or representation that is nearest to and in front of the spectator
Objects in the foreground seem larger than those in the background.
2
: a position of prominence : forefront
We want this issue to be in the foreground.
3
: a level of computer processing at which the processor responds immediately to input to a designated high-priority task compare background
foregrounded; foregrounding; foregrounds
: to bring to the foreground
especially
: to give prominence or emphasis to
Synonyms
Examples of foreground in a Sentence
Noun
We want the issue to be in the foreground.
Verb
Public discussion has foregrounded the issue of health care.
repeatedly foregrounded his experience in international affairs in the course of his campaign for the presidency
Recent Examples on the Web
Eduardo Tansley, The Athletic, 17 Feb. 2025
The effect is to rub our faces in the self-destructive horror of the heroine’s impulses and to shift that baleful sense of the erotic’s dark power from a disturbing subtext to a more sensationalized foreground.
—Jim Shepard, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2025
Beatrice Verhoeven, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Jan. 2025
After a year from hell, podcasting was repeatedly thrust into the spotlight over the past 12 months owing to a preponderance of head-turning moments and a presidential-election cycle that radically foregrounded the medium’s consequential nature.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 13 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for foreground 
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Noun
New York Giants → West Ham United The Manhattan skyline with The Statue of Liberty in the foreground.
—Eduardo Tansley, The Athletic, 17 Feb. 2025
The effect is to rub our faces in the self-destructive horror of the heroine’s impulses and to shift that baleful sense of the erotic’s dark power from a disturbing subtext to a more sensationalized foreground.
—Jim Shepard, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2025
Verb
This film foregrounds the bond between two filmmakers – one Palestinian, the other Israeli – without sentimentalizing the relationship, but emphasizing the different rules that apply to Israelis who live under civil law and Palestinians governed by Israeli military justice.
—Beatrice Verhoeven, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Jan. 2025
After a year from hell, podcasting was repeatedly thrust into the spotlight over the past 12 months owing to a preponderance of head-turning moments and a presidential-election cycle that radically foregrounded the medium’s consequential nature.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 13 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for foreground
Dictionary Entries Near foreground
Cite this Entry
“Foreground.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foreground. Accessed 24 Feb. 2025.
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