bode
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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to be an omen of; portend.
The news bodes evil days for him.
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Archaic. to announce beforehand; predict.
verb (used without object)
verb
verb
-
to be an omen of (good or ill, esp of ill); portend; presage
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archaic (tr) to predict; foretell
verb
Other Word Forms
- bodement noun
- boding noun
Etymology
Origin of bode
before 1000; Middle English boden, Old English bodian to announce, foretell (cognate with Old Norse botha ), derivative of boda messenger, cognate with German Bote, Old Norse bothi
Explanation
The verb bode suggests forecasting. Something bodes well when the clues or signs imply a favorable outcome. But if something bodes ill, you’d better watch out! Something might bode good fortune, or it could bode disaster. The word, which can be traced back to the Old English bodian, "to announce, foretell," is also found in the adjective foreboding, which means "ominous, boding ill."
Vocabulary lists containing bode
Romeo and Juliet
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "B"
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Othello
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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.
Today’s surging energy prices and rising borrowing costs, for example, don’t bode well for people digging expensive holes in their backyards and filling them with water and chemicals.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026
I suppose it’s still possible, but not winning this and the wide-open supporting actress category doesn’t bode well.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026
This does not bode well for stocks, Deluard continues, because “higher volatility is bearish by itself … It forces dealers to shrink their books, traders to reduce capital, and risk-parity funds to cut leverage.”
From MarketWatch • Mar. 9, 2026
“We think this recent commentary and guidance bode well for Marvell in CY26E, and potentially signal a strong January quarter as well.”
From Barron's • Mar. 5, 2026
From here it was impossible to see the door, which didn’t bode well.
From "Time Bomb" by Joelle Charbonneau
Definitions 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.
