as in predicting
formal + literary
to be a sign or warning that something usually bad or unpleasant is going to happen
The distant thunder portended a storm. If you're superstitious, a black cat portends trouble.
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Recent Examples of portending
The bad omens came early at this year’s Burning Man — the infamously wild, weeklong celebration of art, music, and unrestrained self-expression held at the end of every summer in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert — portending a particularly extra-ordinary burn.
—
Denver Nicks, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2025
Denver Nicks, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portending
Verb
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When further trained on human and virus protein interactions, PLM-Interact again outperformed existing models in predicting how viruses interact with host proteins.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Oct. 2025
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Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox made a significant projection for Pittsburgh following the loss, predicting that Mike Tomlin's club will swing a trade for New Orleans Saints receiver Rashid Shaheed.—
Matthew Schmidt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Nicki’s since put the album back on the release calendar, as she’s been promising to drop the project on March 27.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
22 Oct. 2025
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The veteran scribe is launching a new competition — Gauntlet — designed to help promising spec scripts find their way to the screen.—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Local officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony this morning at Philadelphia’s Calder Gardens, the new sanctuary honoring pathbreaking sculptor Alexander Calder, presaging its opening to the public, which is set for September 21.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The officer calmly and sweetly talks to the dog, calling to Moose to get the canine to come closer.—
Angel Saunders,
PEOPLE,
24 Oct. 2025
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Someone keeps calling her on the landline and leaving voice messages and texting her mobile phone—bits of song lyrics, compliments, and emoticons.—
David Wingrave,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Despite the seemingly sweet resolution to their storyline (and an ostensibly upbeat last line of dialogue), there’s a strange undercurrent to the Nagisa and Natsuo segment that suggests foreboding as much as potential happiness — a mysterious tension befitting the creator that Miyake is adapting.—
Josh Slater-Williams,
IndieWire,
17 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Now, the woman seems to be replete with suggestions, boding well for yet another January birthday to keep the holiday spirit going.—
Maria Morava,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
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This astronomical use of explosives will require an increasing amount of TNT as the war continues, boding poorly for the global supply chain for the foreseeable future.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Those are the conclusions of two recent reports about spiraling utility bills, one looking at the past, the other foretelling the future.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
18 Oct. 2025
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Miami had been favored by 13 1/2 points but that whittled to 10 1/2 by kickoff, perhaps foretelling the close game as late gambling money flooded to the Cardinals.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Disney is alerting viewers that its networks including ABC and ESPN could go dark on Google’s YouTube TV as soon as next week, amid an impasse in deal-renewal talks.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
23 Oct. 2025
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Prior to alerting first responders, Rodriguez said her son, Makai Laboy, had just been put down for a nap.—
Megan Forrester,
ABC News,
22 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Portending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portending. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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