as in predicts
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 portends
Giants officials were hoping to see more progress with what otherwise portends to be a troublesome issue against major-league pitching.
—
Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 5 May 2026
Brian now realizes that the pilot’s loss of sphincter control portends not a momentary breakdown of bodily integrity but death.
—Literary Hub, 4 May 2026
As with the Dred Scott decision that preceded the Civil War, such a blatantly undemocratic move portends some great cataclysm.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 4 May 2026
Anything below 50% favorability portends political trouble; right now Trump’s positive standing in polls hovers around a dismal 40%.
—Mark Barabak, Mercury News, 1 May 2026
Anything below 50% favorability portends political trouble; right now Trump’s positive standing in polls hovers around a dismal 40%.
—Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2026
But its rapid scale up portends major changes in the machinery of American health care, swapping manual processes for ones driven by a multitude of AI products.
—Casey Ross, STAT, 6 Apr. 2026
This dynamic portends a tragic end for Iran.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2026
In other words, current prices still do not reflect the extent of shortages a prolonged conflict portends.
—Rob Wile, NBC news, 30 Mar. 2026
Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 5 May 2026
Brian now realizes that the pilot’s loss of sphincter control portends not a momentary breakdown of bodily integrity but death.
—Literary Hub, 4 May 2026
As with the Dred Scott decision that preceded the Civil War, such a blatantly undemocratic move portends some great cataclysm.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 4 May 2026
Anything below 50% favorability portends political trouble; right now Trump’s positive standing in polls hovers around a dismal 40%.
—Mark Barabak, Mercury News, 1 May 2026
Anything below 50% favorability portends political trouble; right now Trump’s positive standing in polls hovers around a dismal 40%.
—Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2026
But its rapid scale up portends major changes in the machinery of American health care, swapping manual processes for ones driven by a multitude of AI products.
—Casey Ross, STAT, 6 Apr. 2026
This dynamic portends a tragic end for Iran.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2026
In other words, current prices still do not reflect the extent of shortages a prolonged conflict portends.
—Rob Wile, NBC news, 30 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portends
Verb
-
Weather Underground predicts a 24% rain chance, partly cloudy skies and the same heat as the opener.—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
10 June 2026
-
Morgan Stanley predicts the space economy could surpass $1 trillion by 2040, and while industries from semiconductors to fiber-optic cables stand to benefit, medicine could see the most immediate disruption.—
Elsa Ohlen,
CNBC,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
This promises to be a mighty event that millions can view in some form — but do many know about it yet?—
Jamie Carter,
Space.com,
13 June 2026
-
For years, promises that self-driving cars were just around the corner fueled billions in investment.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
That bodes well for fans who want to hear the oldies on the Cure’s upcoming tour of Europe.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
6 June 2026
-
There is only so much drama to be found in the first 24 hours, and yet some Islanders have already managed to get their feelings hurt, which bodes well for the next six weeks — for us the viewers anyway.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
But a lack of accountability presages failure for California’s big reform.—
Rachel Canter,
The Atlantic,
9 Apr. 2026
-
An index of 50 is balanced and presages neither economic expansion nor contraction.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Native landscaping calls for lower maintenance, thus reducing water use.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
11 June 2026
-
At the same time, the resolution calls for humane immigration policies that uphold justice and mercy, strongly rejecting nativism, discrimination and racial or ethnic hostility.—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
What that foretells for keeping that split career ongoing into the future remains to be told.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
15 May 2026
-
From the Russian perspective, all of this lines up with Europe’s history and foretells its destiny.—
Simon Shuster,
The Atlantic,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This augurs well for the world’s consumers, but there can be many a slip ‘twixt cup and lip, as the oil analysis say.—
Michael Lynch,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2026
-
The image of James’s paper lantern, let go and floating up into the night sky like a second moon, augurs his eventual fleeing from his family.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
Ernst Baerwald’s odyssey from a cushy childhood in Frankfurt to his final days in a beautiful Berkeley mansion, with a long sojourn in Tokyo along the way, reads like, well, a novel.—
Bethanne Patrick,
Los Angeles Times,
8 June 2026
-
The customer here reads context, craft and cultural fluency immediately.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
8 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Portends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portends. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
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