Thesaurus results for PORTENT

portent

noun

ˈpȯr-ˌtent

Definition of portent

as in forerunner

something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event a red sky in the morning can be a portent of a coming storm

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in miracle

something extraordinary or surprising a scout was sent to have a look at this teenage pitcher who was supposed to be the latest portent of the baseball world

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 portent That Mann and his daughter, at a posh Frankfurt hotel party, glimpse so many remnants of the Nazi era — including Erika’s ex-husband, who collaborated with the regime — is another portent of darkness. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 14 May 2026 Hurley says there are already portents of future protests against SpaceX’s plan, sparked by its lofting just 10,000 Starlink satellites so far into low Earth orbit. — Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 14 May 2026 The company’s example was seen by many as a portent of the AI future. — Geoff Colvin, Fortune, 12 Apr. 2026 Rather than receiving traditional care, however, Hylton was unwittingly plunged into a cold experiment in using remote work to offset hospital staffing shortages, which could be a grim portent in an age of AI automation. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 8 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for portent

Recent Examples of Synonyms for 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

When 70 chickens at a local farm lay 128 eggs in just one night after the arrival of a red helmet biker Emanuel, the event is described as a miracle and Emanuel hailed by the local priest as a prophet of divine powers.

— John Hopewell, Variety, 9 Aug. 2026
The miracle behind Cruz’s discovery is that amphibians such as frogs, toads and salamanders rarely make it into the fossil records because of their fragile skeletons.

— Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of miracle

Noun

An omen of the future — The firing is an event worth paying attention to, says Andon Labs CEO Lukas Petersson, because if AI keeps getting better at its current rate, more of us might be managed by AI bosses in the near future.

— Billy Perrigo, Time, 14 Aug. 2026
Portents and omens, often thought of as signs, have long been important in Hoodoo.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of omen

Noun

Unlike circuits that store classical bits, qubits can exhibit strange phenomena like superposition and entanglement that give them extra computational power.

— Ben Brubaker, Quanta Magazine, 19 Aug. 2026
Spot-motion puppetry show De Fabeltjeskrant, created by Leen Valkenier, first broadcast in 1968 and went on to become a cultural phenomenon in the Netherlands and Belgium.

— Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of phenomenon

Noun

But outside spending groups supporting Marshall and opposing Hamilton have already made major television ad buys this month — a precursor to what’s expected to be an expensive election cycle.

— Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 11 Aug. 2026
Less wealthy associations within and outside the confederation have relied heavily on FIFA funds via Infantino’s FIFA Forward program, the precursor to FFE, which was introduced by him in 2016.

— Aleks Klosok, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026

Definition of precursor

Noun

Mistruths, false claims, scams, and other deceptive efforts are tricking people into thinking that a watermark removal app will do wonders, whereas the reality is that the results are at best half-mixed or aimed to cause damage.

— Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2026
Sustained dry heating works wonders, killing eggs as well as adult bedbugs.

— ABC News, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of wonder

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

Browse Nearby Words

portends

portent

portentous

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“Portent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portent. Accessed 20 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of portent

noun

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