Word family noun prediction predictability ≠ unpredictability predictor adjective predictable ≠ unpredictable predictive verb predict adverb predictably ≠ unpredictably
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpredictorpre‧dic‧tor /prɪˈdɪktə $ -ər/ noun [countable] formal something that shows what will happen in the futurepredictor of High blood pressure is a strong predictor of heart attacks.Examples from the Corpus
predictor• The best predictor of future performance is past performance.• This action has been shown to be a good predictor of therapeutic effectiveness in trigeminal neuralgia.• Personality has not been shown by industrial psychologists to be a very helpful predictor of performance.• None the less, class remained the most important predictor of how an elector might vote.• Demographic studies have shown clearly that low social class or disadvantaged status is a potent predictor of school failure.• It remained a significant predictor when adjusted for clinical, demographic, Holter data and ejection fraction.• As Oliver James pointed out, the most significant predictor of being violent is simply being a man.• Weather predictor systems based on neural networks also key off a large volume of past data to forecast future conditions. 