ominous

[ om-uh-nuhs ]

See synonyms for ominous on Thesaurus.com

adjective

portending evil or harm; foreboding; threatening; inauspicious: an ominous bank of dark clouds.
indicating the nature of a future event, for good or evil; having the significance of an omen; being a portent: Some of these events were immediately ominous, while others only later revealed themselves as such.

Origin of ominous

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin ōminōsus “portentous,” equivalent to ōmin- (stem of ōmen ) + -ōsus; see origin at omen, -ous

synonym study For ominous

Ominous, portentous, threatening, menacing, fateful are adjectives describing that which forebodes a serious, significant, and often harmful outcome. Ominous, derived from omen “a predictor of outcomes,” usually suggests evil or damaging eventualities: ominous storm clouds; an ominous silence. Portentous, although it may suggest evil results, often stresses a momentous or very important outcome: a portentous moment in history; a portentous escalation of hostilities. Threatening may suggest calamity or great harm but sometimes mere unpleasantness: a threatening rumble from the volcano; A threatening look from his brother caused him to quickly change the subject. Menacing always suggests serious damage as an outcome: He advanced with a menacing swagger. Fateful most often stresses the great or decisive importance of what it describes: a fateful encounter between two future leaders; a fateful day that changed our world.

Other words from ominous

om·i·nous·ly, adverb
om·i·nous·ness, noun
un·om·i·nous, adjective
un·om·i·nous·ly, adverb
un·om·i·nous·ness, noun

Words Nearby ominous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ominous in a sentence

In her first movie in more than a decade, decorated New Zealand filmmaker Jane Campion directs Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst in an ominous, gorgeously saturated Western set in 1920s Montana.
The 23 Most Anticipated Movies of Fall 2021 | Andrew R. Chow | August 26, 2021 | Time
There is definitely an ominous butt hanging over our future.
What We Learned This Week Is That Sara Libby Got a New Gig | Scott Lewis | August 18, 2021 | Voice of San Diego
The other, more ominous reason is we may well need to pull the planet back after it blows through dangerous temperature thresholds.
The UN climate report pins hopes on carbon removal technologies that barely exist | James Temple | August 9, 2021 | MIT Technology Review
This ancient crow has just cast the soul into an elongated, particularly ominous door.
‘Death’s Door’: A clever and fun Zelda homage | Christopher Byrd | July 30, 2021 | Washington Post
I guess the skincare die hards have finally gotten to me with their ominous messaging about how excessive sunlight can damage my hide in ways that are undetectable early on but will come back to haunt me later in life.
This Is the First Sunscreen That I Don’t Hate | klindsey | July 22, 2021 | Outside Online

In the back of my mind I was wondering how much time we had before there might be an ominous knock at the door.
The Life and Hard Times Of The Family A Cuban Defector Left Behind | Brin-Jonathan Butler | December 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
In The Lodger an ominous character paced the floor, which Hitchcock constructed of glass.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days | David Freeman | December 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
He wrote that he deserved to die and alluded to a ominous plan that he had backed out of twice already.
School Shooters Love This Pickup Artist Website | Brandy Zadrozny | December 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The drumbeat and synth bass are as insistent as they are ominous.
Is Bigger Better for St. Vincent? | David Yaffe | December 4, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Other hints at the changing war are less ominous, but obnoxious nonetheless.
Downsizing the War: Layoffs and Yard Sales in Afghanistan | Nick Willard | August 1, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Also, some ominous comments on what armies spend and what Governments scrimp:—that is ammunition.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I | Ian Hamilton
They were followed by a little dried-up Italian army surgeon, who carried under his arm an ominous-looking black case.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3) | Charles James Wills
Tony was gay, light-hearted as usual, belying Mrs. Haughstone's ominous prediction.
The Wave | Algernon Blackwood
The glowing heavens, luminous athwart the clouds of fine, suspended sand, laid this ominous hint of dream upon the entire day.
The Wave | Algernon Blackwood
Only the western heavens, where the sun sank in a red mass of ominous splendour, was alive with energy.
The Wave | Algernon Blackwood

British Dictionary definitions for ominous

ominous

/ (ˈɒmɪnəs) /

adjective

foreboding evil
serving as or having significance as an omen

Origin of ominous

C16: from Latin ōminōsus, from omen

Derived forms of ominous

ominously, adverb
ominousness, noun

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

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