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

Though conventional in its concept (family moves into house, spirits possess family, paranormal investigators exorcize spirits), the movie's significance comes from its execution, which electrified audiences with ominous clapping hands and expert control of tension. —Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025

Unwisely agreeing to go for a spin, Tony finds they’re soon tailed by an ominous black SUV. —Dennis Harvey, Variety, 28 Oct. 2025

The Penguins took a 1-0 lead only 59 seconds into the game, an ominous start. —Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025

The brief video features some ominous music and a shot of someone dressed in a suit with shiny shoes. —Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

see omen

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ominous

• abdominis

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

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