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sinistrous

American  
[sin-uh-struhs] / ˈsɪn ə strəs /

adjective

  1. ill-omened; unlucky; disastrous.

  2. sinistral; left.


sinistrous British  
/ ˈsɪnɪstrəs /

adjective

  1. sinister or ill-omened

  2. sinistral

"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

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of sinistrous

1550–60; < Latin sinistr-, stem of sinister ( see sinister) + -ous

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.

See Examples For:

At last he got quite dexterous—and sinistrous, too, for that matter.

From Dr. Jolliffe's Boys by Frank Feller

To say that most of it exists on paper is not sinistrous to an ambitious civil organization which has been in existence but two years.

From The Arena Volume 18, No. 93, August, 1897 by Various

Have I a sinistrous look to meditate such mischief?

From The Advocate by Charles Heavysege

The patriots gratified themselves with expectations that some sinistrous accident, or erroneous conduct, might diffuse discontent, and inflame malignity.

From The Works of Samuel Johnson, Volume 06 Reviews, Political Tracts, and Lives of Eminent Persons by Samuel Johnson

The arrival of a beggar on an Island is accounted a sinistrous event. 

From Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland by Samuel Johnson

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