1
as in feels
a feeling that something bad will happen
I had a nagging presage that the results of my medical tests would not be good
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in heralds
something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event
the sight of the first robin is always a welcome presage of spring
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in predicts
to tell of or describe beforehand
people used to believe that a comet presaged a major event, such as the death of a king
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of presages
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 1 Nov. 2025
Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 22 Jan. 2026
The tension between those companies and the state, which previously issued cease-and-desist letters to prediction markets, potentially presages a state-by-state conflict that plays out across the country.
—Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 12 Nov. 2025
The question facing Federal Reserve policymakers, who will meet next week, is whether the employment numbers presages a broader slump.
—John Cassidy, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
But a second round of arguments is a rare occurrence at the Supreme Court, and sometimes presages a major change by the justices.
—Mark Sherman, Arkansas Online, 30 June 2024
Noun
For Swain, the rise of directs presages nothing less than a revolution in the world’s financial markets.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 1 Nov. 2025
Verb
The company is facing similar litigation in Nevada — and while the injunction is only temporary, and focuses on sports betting, the legal action presages the broader efforts by states to protect the lucrative revenue gambling brings in.
—Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 22 Jan. 2026
The tension between those companies and the state, which previously issued cease-and-desist letters to prediction markets, potentially presages a state-by-state conflict that plays out across the country.
—Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 12 Nov. 2025
The question facing Federal Reserve policymakers, who will meet next week, is whether the employment numbers presages a broader slump.
—John Cassidy, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
But a second round of arguments is a rare occurrence at the Supreme Court, and sometimes presages a major change by the justices.
—Mark Sherman, Arkansas Online, 30 June 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for presages
Noun
-
The city has also issued a Code Blue Extreme Cold Alert, which allows the city to activate resources and warming shelters for feels-like temperatures below 13 degrees.—
Adam Thompson,
CBS News,
23 Jan. 2026
-
To many on the left, agreeing with the premise that regime change would be optimal feels like encouraging the start of another war in the Middle East.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
New studies, however, clearly show that medical marijuana is not nearly as effective as the pro-marijuana lobby heralds.—
Mike Gimbel,
Baltimore Sun,
15 Jan. 2026
-
The indie feature heralds from Benacus Entertainment and RNF Productions.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
But the Opta supercomputer predicts that Qarabag will finish 20th, with Atletico, City and Barcelona sneaking into the top eight over PSG, Newcastle and Chelsea.—
Eduardo Tansley,
New York Times,
28 Jan. 2026
-
And in 2023 DeepMind released AlphaMissense, another AI tool that predicts how mutations in the regions of the genome that do generate proteins affect gene function.—
Tanya Lewis,
Scientific American,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
People crafted narratives out of suspicions, rumors and hints, to fill a desperate need for an explanation.—
M. Gessen,
Mercury News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
There are also a couple of hints that the fate of Europe’s Jews is part of the prevailing atmosphere of unmentionable moral contagion.—
Christopher Tayler,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Here are our predictions for who will win the Big Four categories — album, song and record of the year as well as best new artist — at the 2026 Grammys.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Any statistical deviations from the predictions of the Standard Model could signify the involvement of unknown elementary particles.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Most strikingly, some are from the near future, and have an uncanny resemblance to premonitions.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
13 Jan. 2026
-
The youngest chewing-gum seller would adopt the conspiratorial tones of a seasoned Kremlinologist, seeing signs and premonitions in every event.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Carol’s favorite, Bella Donna, does not carry the same dark portents.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
12 Dec. 2025
-
Black cats can be portents of bad luck.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
27 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
In fact, some of you may have found a more spiritual connection to the universe, seeing omens, signs, and visions of what was, what is and what could be.—
Kyle Thomas,
PEOPLE,
4 Jan. 2026
-
The pattern offers favorable omens for Saquon Barkley, a sports history buff, who breached 1,000 yards rushing with a 132-yard game against the Commanders.—
Brooks Kubena,
New York Times,
24 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Presages.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/presages. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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