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definitions

augur

1
[aw-ger]
See more synonyms for augur on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. one of a group of ancient Roman officials charged with observing and interpreting omens for guidance in public affairs.
  2. soothsayer; prophet.
verb (used with object)
  1. to divine or predict, as from omens; prognosticate.
  2. to serve as an omen or promise of; foreshadow; betoken: Mounting sales augur a profitable year.
verb (used without object)
  1. to conjecture from signs or omens; predict.
  2. to be a sign; bode: The movement of troops augurs ill for the peace of the area.

Origin of augur

1
1540–50; < Latin augur (variant of auger) a diviner, soothsayer, derivative of augēre to augment with orig. implication of “prosper”; cf. august
Can be confusedauger augur

augur

2
[aw-ger]Western U.S.
verb (used without object)
  1. to argue, talk, or converse.
noun
  1. an excessively talkative person.

Origin of augur

2
1920–25; metathetic variant of argue; noun perhaps by association with auger
Can be confusedauger augur
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for augur

foreshadow, signify, foretell, presage, portend, diviner, harbinger, seer, prognosticator, forecaster, prophet, herald, oracle, soothsayer, read, prophesy, adumbrate, forecast, promise, bespeak

Examples from the Web for augur

Contemporary Examples of augur

Historical Examples of augur

  • I say this, because for the present project I can augur no success.

    Gerald Fitzgerald

    Charles James Lever

  • Tell me frankly what could you augur for a cause of which this youth was to be the champion?'

    Gerald Fitzgerald

    Charles James Lever

  • Chipping it with an adze, and boring it with an augur, to ascertain its quality.

    The Sailor's Word-Book

    William Henry Smyth

  • I augur little success from the plan which you have been induced to follow.

  • In so far their suggestion would not augur well for the execution.

British Dictionary definitions for augur

augur

noun
  1. Also called: auspex (in ancient Rome) a religious official who observed and interpreted omens and signs to help guide the making of public decisions
  2. any prophet or soothsayer
verb
  1. to predict (some future event), as from signs or omens
  2. (tr; may take a clause as object) to be an omen (of); presage
  3. (intr) to foreshadow future events to be as specified; bodethis augurs well for us
Derived Formsaugural (ˈɔːɡjʊrəl), adjectiveaugurship, noun

Word Origin for augur

C14: from Latin: a diviner, perhaps from augēre to increase
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for augur
n.

1540s, from Latin augur, a religious official in ancient Rome who foretold events by interpreting omens, perhaps originally meaning "an increase in crops enacted in ritual," in which case it probably is from Old Latin *augos (genitive *augeris) "increase," and is related to augere "increase" (see augment). The more popular theory is that it is from Latin avis "bird," because the flights, singing, and feeding of birds, along with entrails from bird sacrifices, were important objects of divination (cf. auspicious). In that case, the second element would be from garrire "to talk."

v.

c.1600, from augur (n.). Related: Augured; auguring.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper