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.
Losses to Belgium and Portugal in World Cup tuneups do not bode well for Mauricio Pochettino’s plans to reach at least the World Cup semifinals.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
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
There had been a feeling in some quarters that Ireland were not quite the force of yore, and an opening day defeat in Paris did not bode well.
From BBC • Mar. 16, 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
“This does not bode well for Germany,” warned Bert’s father.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
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.
