omen

noun

ˈō-mən How to pronounce omen (audio)
Definition of omennext
as in portent
something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event some people still believe that a black cat crossing your path is a bad omen

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of omen The omens are less obvious on a hot summer day with clear skies. — Rio Yamat, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026 On the company’s quarterly earnings call early Wednesday, the executive made a case for Spidey being a positive omen for Marvel‘s big team-up movie in December. — James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 5 Aug. 2026 Meanwhile, industrial and real estate investment plunged in the first half of the year, a bad omen for the world’s second-biggest economy. — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 15 July 2026 Diarists and observers, including hymn writer John Newton and militia officers, often treated the event as an omen reflecting the gravity of the Revolution. — Joe Rao, Space.com, 4 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for omen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for omen
  1. portent
  2. forerunner
  3. augury
  4. prediction
  5. foreshadowing
  6. precursor
  7. presage
  8. hint
Noun
  • Things are also tough for their friends, Elle (Yasmin Finney) and Tao (William Gao), whose constant bickering seems to be an ominous portent for their on-again-off-again relationship.
    — David Mack, CNN Money, 17 July 2026
  • The push for the category, which comes after Hot Ones earned Daytime Emmys noms in 2022 and 2023, carries symbolic portent, given the category’s housing of traditional late night; a nomination would truly signal a passing of the torch.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 8 July 2026
Definition of portent
Noun
  • Margaret and Alice are the forerunners of Lucy and Ethel, and Shakespeare’s comedy, written expressly to entertain, gives us a sense of what an Elizabethan-era situation comedy might look like.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026
  • One of the forerunners today in Madeira and the Azores is António Maçanita from Azores Wine Company.
    — Forbes.com, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of forerunner
Noun
  • But the most promising augury for season two is that Widow’s Bay is old-school monster-of-the-week episodic television.
    — Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 17 June 2026
  • The rule of thumb is that if a party sees a mass exodus of its members in Congress, that’s a bad augury.
    — Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 5 Sep. 2025
Definition of augury
Noun
  • Rainfall predictions for this weekend for the southeast and windward sides of the Big Island were 5 to 10 inches (13 to 25 centimeters), with as much as 15 inches (38 centimeters) in isolated areas, Oswant said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Ossoff has climbed sharply in prediction markets since the spring, with his chances of capturing the Democratic nomination roughly tripling and moving him into the same conversation as Newsom and Ocasio-Cortez.
    — Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of prediction
Noun
  • What drags the installment down, however, is the sheer predictability and lack of dissent, with seven out of the nine votes being unanimous — a foreshadowing of seasons to come.
    — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 4 June 2026
  • The late-May timing of the FISU announcement could serve as consequential foreshadowing of the International Skating Union’s (ISU) annual congress.
    — Caroline Price, Forbes.com, 28 May 2026
Definition of foreshadowing
Noun
  • In this telling, Ivan appears as a precursor to Stalin and other ruinous Russian despots.
    — Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026
  • In the meantime, fans must endure another six weeks of this slog, which might just be a precursor.
    — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of precursor
Noun
  • Sometimes, the departure of an underperforming executive or official presages improvements ahead.
    — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2026
  • But a lack of accountability presages failure for California’s big reform.
    — Rachel Canter, The Atlantic, 9 Apr. 2026
Definition of presage
Noun
  • And given the lunar ice’s likely extreme age, Dell’Agnello says, tracing its history would offer hints about the origins of Earth’s water as well.
    — Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 20 Aug. 2026
  • In overtime versus Penn State, Moore had a wide-open touchdown to Kenyon Sadiq on the corner route but quickly found the checkdown at the first hint of pressure.
    — Dane Brugler, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of hint

Browse Nearby Words

omegas
omen
omens
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Omen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/omen. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on omen

Nglish: Translation of omen for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about omen

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tilde

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All