inauspicious
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inauspicious
First recorded in 1585–95; in- 3 + auspicious
Explanation
Reaching into your hat to pull out a rabbit and instead removing a sock can seem like an inauspicious start to your magic show. Inauspicious describes something that seems unpromising or unlikely to be successful. If it's unlucky, badly timed, or it seems to point to an unhappy outcome, it's inauspicious. A dark, stormy sky on the day of a wedding can be seen as inauspicious, and so can an awkward job interview. The opposite of inauspicious is auspicious, which means lucky or promising. Both words come from the Latin auspicium, which has to do with predicting the future by observing the flight of birds.
Vocabulary lists containing inauspicious
Romeo and Juliet
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 5
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Twelfth Night
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It was not helped by inauspicious introduction to the public in 2019 when Musk attempted to show off the Cybertruck's apparently unbreakable glass, only for it to shatter during a live demonstration.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
That day, the Facebook Company announced a seemingly inauspicious rebranding to Meta, and its founder, Zuckerberg, was going all-in on the metaverse.
From Slate ● Oct. 28, 2026
After an inauspicious fumble on the opening drive, Williams demonstrated the signature playmaking skills.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Trump had headed into Davos late, after Air Force One broke down -- an inauspicious start to his trip.
From Barron's ● Jan. 22, 2026
In every outward way, the time seemed inauspicious for negotiations.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
