ominous

[om-uh-nuhs]

adjective

1. portending evil or harm; foreboding; threatening; inauspicious.

   an ominous bank of dark clouds.

2. 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.

ominous

/ ˈɒmɪnəs /

adjective

1. foreboding evil

2. serving as or having significance as an omen

Other Word Forms

• ominously adverb
• ominousness noun
• unominous adjective
• unominously adverb
• unominousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ominous¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of ominous¹

C16: from Latin ōminōsus, from _omen

Synonym Study

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.

Related Words

• apocalyptic 
• dangerous 
• dark 
• dire 
• dismal 
• gloomy 
• grim 
• haunting 
• perilous 
• portentous 
• prophetic 
• sinister 
• threatening