as in premonition
a feeling that something bad will happen
a nagging presentiment of danger
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of presentiment
Toni has been reluctant to let Amalie go out by herself—her bringing back a telescope seems to confirm some kind of fear, or presentiment.
—
Willing Davidson, The New Yorker, 21 July 2024
The lavishness turns quickly into horror — Godwin gives us buckets of blood unasked for in the original — and then into a presentiment of Lear on the heath.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2020
Seen from behind, men and women bundled up in heavy coats are saturated with a mute presentiment, that of people beginning to endure.
—Han Kang, Harper's magazine, 10 Feb. 2019
Those years, of course, marked respectively the peak of the frenzied optimism of the last business cycle and the first chilling presentiments of what was to come.
—Gerard Baker, WSJ, 25 Jan. 2019
Willing Davidson, The New Yorker, 21 July 2024
The lavishness turns quickly into horror — Godwin gives us buckets of blood unasked for in the original — and then into a presentiment of Lear on the heath.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2020
Seen from behind, men and women bundled up in heavy coats are saturated with a mute presentiment, that of people beginning to endure.
—Han Kang, Harper's magazine, 10 Feb. 2019
Those years, of course, marked respectively the peak of the frenzied optimism of the last business cycle and the first chilling presentiments of what was to come.
—Gerard Baker, WSJ, 25 Jan. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for presentiment
Noun
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All of this terrified his father, Charlie, a former cop who had a premonition that something would go wrong.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
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Indeed, their many years together reveal themselves as the vital heart of Romano’s own artistic output, as scattered throughout these pages appear pieces of her earlier books and, especially, poems, which come to assume the aura of dreamlike premonitions.—
Brian Robert Moore
September 5,
Literary Hub,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
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This multi-tasking innovation, which is boosted with five skincare ingredients, won over testers with its lightweight and luxurious feel.—
Jackie Fields,
PEOPLE,
9 Sep. 2025
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The company plans to hire local operators to run the space, which will hopefully give the brewery more of a neighborhood feel.—
Jenna Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But all friends need to be honest with each other, to tell each other home truths when it’s needed, to confront those awkward moments without fear of the reaction.—
Steve Sedgwick,
CNBC,
9 Sep. 2025
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The progressive fear that the Abundance movement wants to take over the Democratic Party isn’t baseless at all — its adherents have plenty of influence in it now.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The sting resulted in the arrest of two men over suspicion of copyright infringement in El Sheikh Zayed City near the Greater Cairo metro area.—
Scharon Harding,
ArsTechnica,
4 Sep. 2025
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Any one visiting Russia in the past will know when the subject of China comes up, there are perpetual suspicions toward its territorial intentions in the far east of the country.—
Kerry Brown,
Time,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The prospect of governments being ousted in Tokyo and Paris fueled further uncertainty, while investors voiced worry over expansive deficit spending in London and Berlin.—
Matthew Martin,
semafor.com,
7 Sep. 2025
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My worry is that inaction is not a strategy.—
Shivaram Rajgopal,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But a sense of foreboding about the future of the business has begun to infuse even certain corners of this typically uncynical group.—
Katie Kilkenny,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Sep. 2025
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Early in President Donald Trump’s second term, European leaders and many U.S. defense and security experts were anticipating this week’s NATO summit with foreboding.—
Howard LaFranchi,
Christian Science Monitor,
23 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Presentiment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/presentiment. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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