as in to predict
formal + literary
to be a sign or warning that something usually bad or unpleasant is going to happen
The distant thunder portended a storm. If you're superstitious, a black cat portends trouble.
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Recent Examples of portend
Anything below 50% favorability portends political trouble; right now Trump’s positive standing in polls hovers around a dismal 40%.
—
Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2026
So the Padres choose to view their meager production as a temporary thing that could portend great things.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
Antisemitism on the rise These trends don’t just portend Israel’s strongest ally eventually turning hostile.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2026
While the shocking lack of snowpack at high elevations and crispy grasses in lower elevations portend a potentially apocalyptic wildfire season, some wildfire experts look at those predictions with an asterisk.
—Christine Peterson, Outdoor Life, 15 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for portend
Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2026
So the Padres choose to view their meager production as a temporary thing that could portend great things.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
Antisemitism on the rise These trends don’t just portend Israel’s strongest ally eventually turning hostile.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2026
While the shocking lack of snowpack at high elevations and crispy grasses in lower elevations portend a potentially apocalyptic wildfire season, some wildfire experts look at those predictions with an asterisk.
—Christine Peterson, Outdoor Life, 15 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for portend
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portend
Verb
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The Avs have not blown the doors off this team like many pundits predicted, given the chasm between the two clubs in the final NHL standings.—
Corey Masisak,
Denver Post,
25 Apr. 2026
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The low-pressure system was predicted to pass through Kern County and into the Los Angeles area in the afternoon, eventually making its way south to Orange County and the Inland Empire.—
Austin Turner,
CBS News,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The standoff beneath the bridge, where whole neighborhoods were dislocated by construction and residents had long been promised a park, quickly attracted national attention.—
Jeff McDonald,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
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Shortly after, the President held a press conference and promised the dinner would be rescheduled.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Special election was 'harbinger for Democratic enthusiasm' The polling numbers may not play out, but the voter turnout for Shawn Harris in Georgia's 14th district earlier this month bodes well for Democrats across the state.—
Irene Wright,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2026
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The development bodes poorly for further negotiations, coming just days after Trump extended the ceasefire indefinitely to give Iran more time.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But a lack of accountability presages failure for California’s big reform.—
Rachel Canter,
The Atlantic,
9 Apr. 2026
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As for Cipriani, a hidden history of run-ins with power players seems to have presaged this Shell game.—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Plenty of Sellers’ struggles could be pinned on offensive play calling and a lack of polished talent around him.—
Nick Baumgardner,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
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The plan, conveyed through mediators in Pakistan to break a stalemate with Washington, calls for extending the ceasefire so the parties can work toward a permanent end to the fighting, Axios said.—
Jon Herskovitz,
Bloomberg,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Guardian similarly noted more than a dozen $100,000 bets on prediction markets foretelling the February air strikes on Iran, while The New York Times last month reported 150 bets of $1,000 or more predicting the start of the war.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
21 Apr. 2026
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In another corner, an Anishinaabe weaving seems to foretell Edmonia’s ability to weave between cultures and continents.—
Tyehimba Jess,
ARTnews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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There was no obvious precipitating event, but the encroachment of Grok seemed foreboding.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
14 Mar. 2026
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The windowless hallways are narrow in the federal building that houses this immigration court, and the agents’ stocky bodies are foreboding in the tight corridors.—
Catherine E. Shoichet,
CNN Money,
1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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But some parishioners remain optimistic that this period of intense hardship finally augurs the end of the regime.—
Gisela Salim-Peyer,
The Atlantic,
23 Apr. 2026
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But Bondi’s departure does not augur a better world to come.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Portend.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portend. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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