Synonyms of sinister

sinister

adjective

ˈsi-nə-stər 

as in ominous

being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come

the movie relies too much on sinister background music to create the suspense that the plot sorely lacks

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ominous
• menacing
• threatening
• bleak
• dark
• darkening
• foreboding
• somber
• murky
• portentous
• lonely
• baleful
• minatory
• dire
• black
• unfortunate
• inauspicious
• direful
• desolate
• depressing
• depressive
• ill
• gray
• doomy
• ill-boding
• morbid
• cold
• unfavorable
• dim
• morose
• lugubrious
• gloomy
• saturnine
• sullen
• sepulchral
• lonesome
• cheerless
• elegiac
• funereal
• discouraging
• troubled
• dismal
• evil
• dreary
• disconsolate
• glum
• forlorn
• malignant
• unpropitious
• hopeless
• chill
• cloudy
• drear
• disheartening
• unpromising
• miserable
• malign
• comfortless
• plutonian
• tenebrous
• godforsaken
• wretched
• unlucky
• dreich
• Cimmerian
• sunless
• tenebrific
• ill-fated
• ill-starred
• star-crossed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• favorable
• benign
• bright
• promising
• golden
• hopeful
• encouraging
• unthreatening
• prosperous
• auspicious
• propitious
• heartening

Synonym Chooser

How is the word sinister different from other adjectives like it?

The words baleful and malign are common synonyms of sinister. While all three words mean "seriously threatening evil or disaster," sinister suggests a general or vague feeling of fear or apprehension on the part of the observer.

a sinister aura haunts the place

When is it sensible to use baleful instead of sinister?

The synonyms baleful and sinister are sometimes interchangeable, but baleful imputes perniciousness or destructiveness to something whether working openly or covertly.

exerting a corrupt and baleful influence

When would malign be a good substitute for sinister?

The words malign and sinister are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, malign applies to what is inherently evil or harmful.

the malign effects of racism

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of sinister

But in Silicon Valley, a different, more sinister explanation for the anti-data center movement has taken hold. — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026

But now Disney has shared more of what’s coming to the sinister territory just beyond the spires of the park’s Wildest Ride in the Wilderness. — Megan Dubois, Southern Living, 17 Aug. 2026

In the more familiar galaxy far, far away, their friends Hera Syndulla, Ezra Bridger, Zeb Orrelios and Chopper must face the powerful Grand Admiral Thrawn and his sinister allies, who seek to plunge the fledgling New Republic into war. — Angeline Jane Bernabe, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026

The clip released last night shows this is a more complex, sinister strategist than Josh Brolin’s crash-bang-boom baddie Thanos from the previous Avengers pics. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 15 Aug. 2026

Phrases Containing sinister

• bar sinister