premonition
Americannoun
-
a feeling of anticipation of or anxiety over a future event; presentiment.
He had a vague premonition of danger.
- Synonyms:
- sign, omen, portent, foreboding
-
a forewarning.
noun
-
an intuition of a future, usually unwelcome, occurrence; foreboding
-
an early warning of a future event; forewarning
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of premonition
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English premunicioun, from Late Latin praemonitiōn-, stem of praemonitiō “a forewarning”; equivalent to pre- + monition; also cf. praemunire
Explanation
Some people claim to have premonitions, such as a dream about a friend they haven't seen in years the night before the friend dies. A premonition is a warning that comes in advance, or a feeling that something is going to happen. Like the synonym foreboding, a premonition usually refers to something bad or harmful. This noun is from Middle French premonicion, from Late Latin praemonitio, from Latin praemonere "to warn in advance," from the prefix prae- "before" plus monere "to warn."
Vocabulary lists containing premonition
The Outsiders
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Power Prefix: pre-
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Metamorphosis
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Oddly, that cigar turned out to be an unwitting premonition.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 28, 2025
The first part of Mulder's premonition has proven to be true - Hayen's Brugge beat Villa, Sporting and Sturm Graz in the group phase, as well as drawing with Juventus and Celtic.
From BBC • Mar. 3, 2025
Our former faith in manifest destiny always included another possibility; let’s call it a premonition of manifest doom.
From Salon • Jan. 21, 2025
Dr. Bitton saw that, in a sense, everything that had passed between himself and Mr. Sinwar was a premonition of the events now coming to pass.
From New York Times • May 26, 2024
A shiver of premonition ran down Ophie’s arms, but she shrugged it away.
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
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.
