ominous

adjective

om·​i·​nous ˈä-mə-nəs 

: being or exhibiting an omen : portentous

… in Italy, it's Friday the 17th that's considered ominous …

—Sarah Otter

especially : foreboding or foreshadowing evil, misfortune, or calamity : inauspicious

It was quiet in an ominous way; it was quiet in the way of small, frightening sounds.

—Kate DiCamillo

… some ominous storm clouds loom on the horizon.

—Bob Kravitz

ominously adverb

… a small molten spring ominously developed near the bottom of the north side, and lava ran down from it like a small molten brook.

—John McPhee

ominousness noun

Did you know?

Ominous didn't always mean that something bad was about to happen. If you look closely, you can see the omen in ominous, which gave it the original meaning of "being a sign of events to come"—whether good or bad. It ultimately comes from the Latin word omen, which is both an ancestor and a synonym of our omen. Today, however, ominous suggests a menacing or threatening aspect. Its synonyms portentous and fateful are used similarly, but ominous is the most menacing of the three. It implies an alarming quality that foreshadows evil or disaster. So when something wicked this way comes, count on ominous to deliver the news aforehand.

Synonyms of ominous

• sinister
• menacing
• bleak

Choose the Right Synonym for ominous

ominous, portentous, fateful mean having a menacing or threatening aspect.

ominous implies having a menacing, alarming character foreshadowing evil or disaster.

ominous rumblings from the volcano

portentous suggests being frighteningly big or impressive but now seldom definitely connotes forewarning of calamity.

an eerie and portentous stillness

fateful suggests being of momentous or decisive importance.

the fateful conference that led to war

Examples of ominous in a Sentence

Not many sets of initials became universally recognizable during the twentieth century, and those that did often had ominous overtones, from SS to KGB. —Geoffrey Wheatcroft, Atlantic, March 2001

While politicians and multinational corporations extol the virtues of NAFTA … the ominous curtain is already up in a six-mile section at the border crossing at Mexicali … —Leslie Marmon Silko, Yellow Woman and a Beauty of the Spirit, 1996

Fighting against sensations that sought to claim him, he moved nervously and the note in his hand rattled with a dry and ominous whisper. —Richard Wright, Rite of Passage, 1994

Arranged in two long and ominous rows, the branding irons dangled from the ceiling in the center of the room, suggesting some sort of fence or jail … —Lewis H. Lapham, Harper's, May 1993

an ominous threat of war

He spoke in ominous tones.

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s a blank panel next to the 14 crashes, an ominous open space ripe for fresh carnage. — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 24 Sep. 2026

That’s an ominous sign for a Bucs team that faces the Vikings and Packers at home, then travels to Dallas for a Thursday night game against the Cowboys in a span of 12 days. — Rick Stroud, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Sep. 2026

Directed by Kei Oikawa and based on the manga series by Nagano, the fantasy adventure follows Chiikawa and companions traveling to an island paradise before uncovering an ominous threat. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 21 Sep. 2026

While City has made an ominous start to the post-Pep Guardiola era with five straight victories to top the nascent Premier League standings, Tottenham is in last place, has yet to win and only recorded its first goals this past weekend. — ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

see omen

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ominous

• abdominis

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Kids Definition

ominous

adjective

om·​i·​nous ˈäm-ə-nəs 

: being or showing a sign of evil or misfortune to come

ominous clouds

ominously adverb