Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Menacing; threatening: ominous black clouds; ominous rumblings of discontent.
- adj. Of or being an omen, especially an evil one.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Conveying some omen; serving as a sign or token; significant.
- Of good omen; auspicious.
- Of ill omen; giving indication of coming ill; portentous; inauspicious; unlucky.
Wiktionary
- adj. Of or pertaining to an omen or to omens; being or exhibiting an omen; significant.
- adj. Specifically, giving indication of a coming ill; being an evil omen; threatening; portentous; inauspicious.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Of or pertaining to an omen or to omens; being or exhibiting an omen; significant; portentous; -- formerly used both in a favorable and unfavorable sense; now chiefly in the latter; foreboding or foreshowing evil; inauspicious.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. presaging ill fortune
- adj. threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
Etymologies
- Latin ōminōsus, from ōmen, ōmin-, omen.
Examples
“Devil's Reef, the Devil's Horse-shoe or by some other term ominous of shipwrecks.”
“What's even more ominous is that the trendlines aren't all that great, heading into October.”
The Huffington Post: Chris Weigant: Obama Poll Watch: September, 2010
“A wave of hateful messages and death threats hit the University, and was joined soon enough by a few political leaders and wealthy donors instructing officials in ominous tones to cancel my visit to the campus.”
“Within a week, Syria agrees to a returning US Envoy, that should tell you something real ominous is brewing.”
Officials: President Obama reconsidering July 4 invitations to Iran
“He put the question seemingly to the glowing log, and, as if in ominous foreshadow, it flared brightly and crumbled away in a burst of sparks.”
“It is no accident that the same attorney general who has withheld information about who is being detained and why has also repeatedly warned in ominous tones that more terrorist attacks are just around the corner.”
“Things looked ominous from the start for the Jayhawks.”
“I would wager something ominous is going to happen.”
Think Progress » Source to Stephanopoulos: President Bush Directly Involved In Leak Scandal
“As for Crassus, he was sprawled on the consular front bench opposite, with his arms folded and his legs casually outstretched, regarding Pompey with an expression of ominous calm.”
“But if the panic spreads to Spain, a very significant economy which is several times larger, the situation could become far more ominous, which is why so many investors are hitting the "sell" button on their trading desks.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘ominous’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4084 more...
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Artistic words
Good for poetry, or just artistic on their own.
fluxus, gallant, kinetic, lurk, disengage, mist, agleam, voyeur, devoid, crimson, ebony, azure and 94 more...
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3/4 year Vocab List
garbled, verbose, behoove, runt, douse, stipulate, condolence, incongruous, mundane, euphemism, brusque, labyrinth and 96 more...
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3/4 year Vocab List
lackluster, reprimand, loathe, abhor, willful, ample, tremulous, ominous, subtle, rescind, redundant, pretentious and 96 more...
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Vocab #11
ominous, tremulous, repudiate, cessation, bristle, salient, facetious, versatile, labyrinth, brusque
gcastro the exorcist is ominous Oct 1, 2010