Synonyms of inauspicious

inauspicious

adjective

ˌi-ˌnȯ-ˈspi-shəs 

as in ominous

being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come

this many problems so early in the project is a most inauspicious sign

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ominous
• sinister
• menacing
• bleak
• threatening
• direful
• unfortunate
• dark
• portentous
• murky
• lonely
• somber
• dire
• darkening
• baleful
• ill
• foreboding
• desolate
• minatory
• depressive
• unfavorable
• depressing
• black
• ill-boding
• gray
• doomy
• cold
• dim
• morbid
• unpropitious
• dismal
• cheerless
• gloomy
• unpromising
• lonesome
• dreary
• discouraging
• saturnine
• lugubrious
• troubled
• miserable
• morose
• sepulchral
• sullen
• glum
• disconsolate
• elegiac
• unlucky
• comfortless
• forlorn
• funereal
• hopeless
• drear
• cloudy
• disheartening
• wretched
• chill
• evil
• godforsaken
• malignant
• ill-fated
• plutonian
• tenebrous
• dreich
• ill-starred
• malign
• tenebrific
• sunless
• Cimmerian
• star-crossed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• favorable
• promising
• auspicious
• bright
• benign
• golden
• prosperous
• hopeful
• encouraging
• unthreatening
• propitious
• heartening

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of inauspicious

Ohtani’s seventh inning got off to an inauspicious start. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2026

The injury, identified at the time as a right hamstring spasm, came at a particularly inauspicious moment, with Perez in the midst of one of his best starts in the season, with nine strikeouts in four scoreless innings. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 28 May 2026

Although economists disagree in their predictions, the future of the job market seems inauspicious, especially for white-collar workers. — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 7 May 2026

Despite an inauspicious varsity debut, Selders bounced back to begin last season as the Bulldogs’ third baseman. — Steve Reaven, Chicago Tribune, 30 Apr. 2026