portend

C2+ Topic:Safety & Risk
US /pɔrˈtɛnd/ UK /pɔːˈtɛnd/
verb

Meanings

  1. 1
    verb

    to be a sign or warning that something, usually momentous, is likely to happen

    The darkening clouds seemed to portend a violent storm.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 verb · to be a sign or warning... foreshadowpresageaugurforetellforebodeheraldbetokensignify
Word family
Derived forms portentportentous
Related forms portentportentous

Etymology

From Latin portendere ('to foretell, predict, indicate'), from por- (a variant of pro-, 'forth') + tendere ('to stretch').

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Topics

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