From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishfatefulfate‧ful /ˈfeɪtfəl/ adjective [usually before noun] IMPORTANThaving an important, especially bad, effect on future eventsfateful day/night/year etc The goalkeeper on that fateful day in 1954 was Fred Martin. When his rent was raised, he made the fateful decision to move north. —fatefully adverb
Examples from the Corpus
fateful• There were to be extraordinary inconsistencies in the description of that fateful call by the main participants.• To go no further back than the nineteenth century, we have had the fateful dates 1815,1871,1914.• Years later, all that she would remember of that fateful day were two things.• Whether to try cotton again is a potentially fateful decision for Valley farmers.• In just these few days the name had taken on a resonance, a sense of fateful event.fateful day/night/year etc• Tony is one of two silent victims of that fateful day.• Then in mid-July, shortly after his requested transfer to the U. S. Army finally came through, the fateful night arrived.• Wishart thought back to what he had heard about that fateful night at the banquet.• The scores of journalists who had descended on New Madrid for the fateful day ended up reporting on one another instead.• One fateful day, he was sitting on his horse when a stunt went awry in a John Ford picture.• The first delivery of post came and went on that fateful day, no letter.• Years later, all that she would remember of that fateful day were two things.• The least valued attribute may come to the rescue on some fateful day when that very quality is required. 