See Also:

fate (oh) and come-on (iou)


fate (oh)



[Date: 1300-1400; Language: French; Origin: Latin fatum 'what has been spoken (by the gods)', from fari 'to speak']
[C usually singular] the things that will happen to someone, especially unpleasant events
::I wouldn't wish such a fate on my worst enemy.
fate of
::No one knows what the fate of the hostages will be.
:: The rest of Europe was to suffer the same fate .
:: A meeting to decide the fate of the factory is to be held today.
:: She wanted to prevent Other children from meeting the same fate .
:: They had abandoned him and left him to his fate .
::Spencer's father had died young, and he feared that the same fate awaited him.
::They would rather starve to death than accept the fate of slavery.
:: She seemed placidly resigned to her fate .
:: the fate that befell a captured rebel General
:: Nothing is known of Green's origins or ultimate fate , only that he was involved in building the church.
[U] a power that is believed to control what happens in people's lives
::Fate plays cruel tricks sometimes.
a twist/quirk of fate
(=something unexpected that happens)
::By a strange twist of fate Smith's first match is against the team that gave him the sack last season.
a fate worse than death
something terrible that might happen to you - often used humorously
::He had rescued an innocent young girl from a fate worse than death.
the Fates
the three goddesses who, according to the ancient Greeks, controlled what happened to people
-see also tempt fate at tempt (3)
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COLLOCATES for sense 1
suffer a fate
seal/decide/settle somebody's fate (=make it certain that something will happen to someone)
meet the same/a similar fate
leave/abandon somebody to their fate (=leave someone when something terrible could happen to them)
the fate awaiting somebody (=what will happen to someone)
accept a fate
resign yourself to your fate (=accept it)
a fate befalls somebody (=they suffer a particular fate)
somebody's ultimate fate (=the final things that happen)

come-on (iou)



come-on noun & adjective. slang. L19.
[from come on s.v. COME verb.]
A. noun.
A dupe. L19.
A swindler. E20.
An enticement, an invitation to approach. E20.
b. adjective. Enticing. E20.