2 N‑SING [oft in/to N ] If something or someone is in the foreground , or comes to the foreground , they receive a lot of attention. □ This is another worry that has come to the foreground in recent years.
fore|hand /fɔː r hænd/ (forehands ) N‑COUNT A forehand is a shot in tennis or squash in which the palm of your hand faces the direction in which you are hitting the ball. □ Agassi saw his chance and, with another lightning forehand, reached match point.
fore|head /fɒ r I d, fɔː r hed/ (foreheads ) N‑COUNT [oft poss N ] Your forehead is the area at the front of your head between your eyebrows and your hair.
for|eign ◆◆◆ /fɒ r I n, [AM ] fɔː r-/
1 ADJ Something or someone that is foreign comes from or relates to a country that is not your own. □ …a huge attraction for foreign visitors. □ She was on her first foreign holiday without her parents. □ …a foreign language. □ It is the largest ever private foreign investment in the Bolivian mining sector.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] In politics and journalism, foreign is used to describe people, jobs, and activities relating to countries that are not the country of the person or government concerned. □ …the German foreign minister. □ I am the foreign correspondent in Washington of La Tribuna newspaper of Honduras. □ …the effects of U.S. foreign policy in the 'free world'.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A foreign object is something that has got into something else, usually by accident, and should not be there. [FORMAL ] □ The patient's immune system would reject the transplanted organ as a foreign object.
4 ADJ Something that is foreign to a particular person or thing is not typical of them or is unknown to them. □ [+ to ] The very notion of price competition is foreign to many schools.
fo r|eign bo dy (foreign bodies ) N‑COUNT A foreign body is an object that has come into something else, usually by accident, and should not be in it. [FORMAL ] □ …a foreign body in the eye.
for|eign|er ◆◇◇ /fɒ r I nə r , [AM ] fɔː r-/ (foreigners ) N‑COUNT A foreigner is someone who belongs to a country that is not your own. □ They are discouraged from becoming close friends with foreigners.
fo r|eign ex|cha nge (foreign exchanges )
1 N‑PLURAL Foreign exchanges are the institutions or systems involved with changing one currency into another. □ On the foreign exchanges, the U.S. dollar is up point forty-five.
2 N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Foreign exchange is used to refer to foreign currency that is obtained through the foreign exchange system. □ …an important source of foreign exchange. □ …foreign-exchange traders.
Fo r|eign Of|fice (Foreign Offices ) N‑COUNT [oft N n] The Foreign Office is the government department, especially in Britain, which has responsibility for the government's dealings and relations with foreign governments. □ …a Foreign Office spokesman.
fo r|eign ser|vice N‑SING The foreign service is the government department that employs diplomats to work in foreign countries. [AM ] in BRIT, use diplomatic service
fore|knowl|edge /fɔː r nɒ l I dʒ/ N‑UNCOUNT If you have foreknowledge of an event or situation, you have some knowledge of it before it actually happens. □ [+ of ] She has maintained that the General had foreknowledge of the plot.
fore|leg /fɔː r leg/ (forelegs ) N‑COUNT [usu pl] A four-legged animal's forelegs are its two front legs.
fore|lock /fɔː r lɒk/ (forelocks )
1 N‑COUNT A forelock is a piece of hair that falls over your forehead. People often used to pull their forelocks to show respect for other people of a higher class than they were.
2 PHRASE If you say that a person tugs their forelock to another person, you are criticizing them for showing too much respect to the second person or being unnecessarily worried about their opinions. [mainly BRIT , DISAPPROVAL ]
fore|man /fɔː r mən/ (foremen )
1 N‑COUNT A foreman is a person, especially a man, in charge of a group of workers. □ He visited the dairy daily, but left the business details to his foreman.
2 N‑COUNT The foreman of a jury is the person who is chosen as their leader. □ There was applause from the public gallery as the foreman of the jury announced the verdict.
fore|most /fɔː r moʊst/
1 ADJ The foremost thing or person in a group is the most important or best. □ He was one of the world's foremost scholars of ancient Indian culture.
2 PHRASE You use first and foremost to emphasize the most important quality of something or someone. [EMPHASIS ] □ It is first and foremost a trade agreement.
fore|name /fɔː r ne I m/ (forenames ) N‑COUNT [oft poss N ] Your forename is your first name. Your forenames are your names other than your surname. [FORMAL ]
fore|noon /fɔː r nuːn/ N‑SING The forenoon is the morning. [OLD-FASHIONED ]
fo|ren|sic /fəre ns I k/ (forensics )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Forensic is used to describe the work of scientists who examine evidence in order to help the police solve crimes. □ They were convicted on forensic evidence alone. □ Forensic experts searched the area for clues.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Forensics is the use of scientific techniques to solve crimes. □ …the newest advances in forensics. □ …federal forensics legislation.