portends

verb

present tense third-person singular of portend
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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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of portends Iran is not the only Middle Eastern country excluded from the emerging security arrangement that Mecca portends. — Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026 Balor enjoyed an elusive win over the seven-foot-tall Talla Tonga, which typically portends well for wrestlers looking to get a world title shot. — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026 Chairman Kevin Warsh has talked tough on inflation and his creation of task forces to study how the Fed operates seems a measured approach, but portends inaction. — Justin Zacks, CNBC, 24 July 2026 This seemingly portends a trade somewhere down the line, but for now, the Thunder capitalized on a talent tier drop-off ahead of the next group of players. — John Hollinger, New York Times, 24 June 2026 This is a delicate and dicey subject to even bring up, since the industry right now is in the grip of multiple perceptions and anxieties about what AI portends for the future of entertainment. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 18 June 2026 Regardless, Canadian space boosters say the launch portends more good things to come from a country eager to develop its own orbital lift capability. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 12 June 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portends
  1. predicts
  2. promises
  3. bodes
  4. presages
  5. calls
  6. foretells
  7. augurs
  8. reads
Verb
  • Barclays Investment Bank predicts that the market, now valued at $2 billion to $3 billion, could grow to $200 billion by 2035.
    — Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026
  • In Helaena’s room, Rhaenyra finds a tapestry Helaena had just finished sewing that predicts a dark and fiery end for Rhaenyra in the future.
    — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of predicts
Verb
  • The facility promises innovation in medicine, clean energy, engineering, and national security through large-scale computer modeling and simulations, according to the university.
    — Jack Springgate, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • The live stream promises boundless access and constant visibility, collapsing the boundary between the real and the performed, the private and the public, until living a life and broadcasting one become virtually indistinguishable.
    — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of promises
Verb
  • That bodes extremely well for plane spotting out in broad daylight this summer.
    — Florence Ion, PC Magazine, 27 June 2026
  • The Obama Presidential Center opening June 18 also bodes well for tourism, both in burnishing the city’s image and creating a new attraction to draw domestic and international visitors to Chicago, Reynolds said.
    — Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 25 June 2026
Definition of bodes
Verb
  • The backlash to the Barbara decision presages another legal and cultural battle over the meaning of the 14th Amendment and its role in the debate over who is recognized as an American citizen, observers say.
    — Scott Baldauf, Christian Science Monitor, 22 July 2026
  • But a lack of accountability presages failure for California’s big reform.
    — Rachel Canter, The Atlantic, 9 Apr. 2026
Definition of presages
Verb
  • Shavers has spent years warning about button pushing, where an examiner runs the tool, accepts the output and calls it an examination.
    — Lars Daniel, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Curiously, the man says goodbye to Thom by name — but when Bret calls this out the next morning, Thom denies it.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of calls
Verb
  • At Saul's request, the witch summons what appears to be the spirit of the deceased prophet Samuel, who foretells Saul's death in battle — raising the question of theodicy, or why an all-powerful God would allow an apparently diabolical act to occur.
    — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 29 July 2026
  • Annabeth has grown to care for Percy, but like Thalia, his fate is possibly tied to a prophecy that foretells of him destroying or saving Olympus.
    — Sabrina Reed, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of foretells
Verb
  • Pintscher, who will succeed current music director Jaime Martín beginning in 2027-28 season, augurs a new era for LACO.
    — Classical Music Critic, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
  • In the film’s ferocious climax, Jim is shot but escapes with Selena and Hannah, and the story closes (28 days later) back in the countryside as a jet flies over and augurs their rescue.
    — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 24 June 2026
Definition of augurs
Verb
  • Expansion to all hospitals countywide would be finished by the end of 2027, the motion reads.
    — Steve Scauzillo, Daily News, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Hours later, as the three men sit behind bars, an officer reads Twist his Miranda rights.
    — CBS Chicago Team, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of reads

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portends
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Cite this Entry

“Portends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portends. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

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