Des"ti*ny (?), n.; pl.
Destinies (#). [OE. destinee,
destene, F. destinée, from destiner. See
Destine.] 1. That to which any person or
thing is destined; predetermined state; condition foreordained by the
Divine or by human will; fate; lot; doom.
Thither he
Will come to know his destiny.
Shak.
No man of woman born,
Coward or brave, can shun his destiny.
Bryant.
2. The fixed order of things; invincible
necessity; fate; a resistless power or agency conceived of as
determining the future, whether in general or of an
individual.
But who can turn the stream of
destiny?
Spenser.
Fame comes only when deserved, and then is as
inevitable as destiny, for it is destiny.
Longfellow.
The Destinies (Anc. Myth.), the three
Parcæ, or Fates; the supposed powers which preside over human
life, and determine its circumstances and duration.
Marked by the Destinies to be
avoided.
Shak.