Synonyms of ominous

ominous

adjective

ˈä-mə-nəs 

as in sinister

being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come

that comment about downsizing from the company president sounded ominous

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective ominous differ from other similar words?

The words fateful and portentous are common synonyms of ominous. While all three words mean "having a menacing or threatening aspect," ominous implies having a menacing, alarming character foreshadowing evil or disaster.

ominous rumblings from the volcano

Where would fateful be a reasonable alternative to ominous?

The words fateful and ominous can be used in similar contexts, but fateful suggests being of momentous or decisive importance.

the fateful conference that led to war

When can portentous be used instead of ominous?

Although the words portentous and ominous have much in common, portentous suggests being frighteningly big or impressive but now seldom definitely connotes forewarning of calamity.

an eerie and portentous stillness

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ominous

In a quiet Argentinian town, the arrival of an ominous former police commissioner and his seductive wife fractures the bond between four inseparable young men. — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 28 July 2026

These recent actions, while ominous, are only the latest salvoes. — James Robenalt, Vanity Fair, 27 July 2026

Thanos, the ominous figure glimpsed in the post-credits scene of The Avengers in 2012, had a face, and a two-time Oscar nominee face at that. — Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026

As energy continually ramps upward, the score by Maxim Lany and Jonas Nuttin moves from ominous horns to pulsing electronica, with some neat incorporation of prayer-call-like motifs underlining the hero’s Muslim faith. — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 26 July 2026

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