Dĕs'ti-ny, n.
n. [Fr. destinée, Pr. destinada, It. destinata, from Lat. destināre; same as Fr. destin, Pr. destí, Sp., Pg., & It. destino, from Lat. destināre. See DESTINE.]
Sense 1. That to which any person or thing is destined; appointed or predetermined state; foreordained condition; fate; doom.
Thither he Will come to know his destiny. Shak.
Sense 2. The fixed order of things; invincible necessity; fate; hence, the power conceived of as determining the future, whether in general or of an individual.
But who can turn the stream of destiny? Spenser.
Sense 3. (pl.) (Anc. Myth.) The three Parcae, or Fates; the supposed powers which preside over human life, and determine its circumstances and duration. “Till . . . Destinies do cut his thread of life.” Shak.