portend

[ pawr-tend, pohr- ]

/ pɔrˈtɛnd, poʊr- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR portend ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to indicate in advance; to foreshadow or presage, as an omen does: The street incident may portend a general uprising.

to signify; mean.

Nearby words

portative, portative organ, portcullis, porte, porte-cochere, portend, portent, portentous, porter, porter chair, porter's sign

Origin of portend

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin portendere to point out, indicate, portend, variant of prōtendere to extend. See pro-¹, tend¹

SYNONYMS FOR portend

1 foretell, forecast, augur, promise, forebode.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR portend ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formsun·por·tend·ed, adjective

Can be confusedportend pretend (see synonym study at pretend)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for portend

Could the retirement of Rep. Tom Latham, a close friend, portend the exit of Speaker John Boehner as well?
Latham’s Retirement Spurs Boehner Rumors|Ben Jacobs|December 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
A look at the most bizarre metrics used to portend the winner of the presidential election.
Strangest Presidential Election Predictors: 7-Eleven Coffee Cups & More|Kevin Fallon|October 4, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Well, the polls have started to come, and they portend total disaster.
Michael Tomasky on the GOP’s Self-Delusion Syndrome|Michael Tomasky|September 27, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The even bigger question, of course, is whether unity will portend not peace but war?
October Surprise?|Elisheva Goldberg|May 8, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Considering, he believed that so round a form and so great a voice must portend much good feeding.
The Ninth Vibration And Other Stories|L. Adams Beck
This act was construed to be an insult to the flag, and to portend treason and rebellion.
The Life of John Taylor|B. H. Roberts
Amongst these were two (see frontispiece) which appeared to portend plague and fire respectively.
Myths and Marvels of Astronomy|Richard A. Proctor
Swans, when they fly against the wind, portend rain, a sign frequently fulfilled.
Eccentricities of the Animal Creation.|John Timbs
Indeed, Napoleon's threats to this hapless realm seemed for a time to portend its annihilation.
The Life of Napoleon I (Volumes, 1 and 2)|John Holland Rose

British Dictionary definitions for portend

portend

/ (pɔːˈtɛnd) /

verb (tr)

to give warning of; predict or foreshadow

obsolete to indicate or signify; mean

Word Origin for portend

C15: from Latin portendere to indicate, foretell; related to prōtendere to stretch out

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 portend

portend

early 15c., from Latin portendere "foretell, reveal; point out, indicate," originally "to stretch forward," from por- (variant of pro-; see pro-) "forth, forward" + tendere "to stretch, extend" (see tenet). Related: Portended; portending.

portend

verb (used with object)

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of portend

Examples from the Web for portend

British Dictionary definitions for portend

portend

verb (tr)

Word Origin for portend

Word Origin and History for portend

portend