1
as in ominous
being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come
an eerie and portentous stillness hung over the camp the night before the battle
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in marvellous
causing wonder or astonishment
in 1969 people regarded the first landing on the moon as a truly portentous event
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of portentous
This game would have been twice as portentous if Davis had been healthy, but the 10-time All-Star who teamed up with James to lead the Lakers to the 2020 championship is out at least two more weeks with a groin injury sustained in his Mavs debut.
—
Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 26 Feb. 2025
After the game, Dončić warmly greeted his former teammates but also took a few portentous looks at the Mavericks bench during the night.
—Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
With its whisper-thin characters, vague narrative, and acres of portentous poetry about sound, Rabbit Trap feels somehow both underwritten and overwritten.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 25 Jan. 2025
Advertisement Starting with his film-school projects in the early 1970s, David Cronenberg hit the ground running with projects that tucked sharp social critiques into ominously portentous narratives.
—Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 24 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for portentous
Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 26 Feb. 2025
After the game, Dončić warmly greeted his former teammates but also took a few portentous looks at the Mavericks bench during the night.
—Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
With its whisper-thin characters, vague narrative, and acres of portentous poetry about sound, Rabbit Trap feels somehow both underwritten and overwritten.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 25 Jan. 2025
Advertisement Starting with his film-school projects in the early 1970s, David Cronenberg hit the ground running with projects that tucked sharp social critiques into ominously portentous narratives.
—Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 24 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for portentous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portentous
Adjective
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In a small 18th-century English village, locals hear ominous barking.—
Shannon Carlin,
Time,
22 May 2025
-
There’s a shift in the second to last episode when Michaela suddenly becomes not ridiculous or ominous, but self-aware and human and someone who very clearly sees what a fraud her life has been.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Though it was written around the time of Malibu’s Woolsey fire, the 14-minute long dirge that encompasses flames in Malibu and a cougar that roams the hills took on a new and sinister meaning in the aftermath of the more recent fires.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
19 May 2025
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With the two men mismatched in temperament and direction, Diller was gone in a year and a half—fleeing one sinister Davis (Martin) for the arms of another, equally sinister one (Marvin), who controlled Twentieth Century Fox.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
19 May 2025
Adjective
-
My daughter came to live with us for nine wonderful years.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
27 May 2025
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Your wonderful dog may or may not hanker to break routine and go on holiday.—
John Oseid,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2025
Adjective
-
If the sky becomes menacing and thunder becomes audible, seek out a safe place to seek shelter.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
29 May 2025
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The man was arrested on suspicion of second-degree assault strangulation, second-degree kidnapping, false imprisonment, menacing and prohibited use of weapons, deputies said.—
Sara Schilling,
Sacbee.com,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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Game two was astonishing, and a full reckoning of the faults that existed in the defending champs’ armor.—
Tom Rende,
Forbes.com,
21 May 2025
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After 23 years and an astonishing 4,953 episodes, the show reaches its finale Friday as the sports media industry’s most prolific on-air talent incubator.—
Dan Shanoff,
New York Times,
21 May 2025
Adjective
-
There’s conflict in everything, in the clashing of worlds and the fight for a world that makes sense to believe in, yet miraculous poetry and optimism somehow, too.—
Ella Kemp,
IndieWire,
23 May 2025
-
Their survival, staff say, is nothing short of miraculous.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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There’s still men — there’s Benson, who’s doing amazing.—
Mikael Wood,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2025
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Following the amazing Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake from the end of last year, the other two parts of the Erdrick Trilogy are being combined into one game.—
Ollie Barder,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
Adjective
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The Cardinals certainly hope that’s the case, as their rotation has been a surprising strength.—
Katie Woo,
New York Times,
26 May 2025
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Listen to this article 3 min Italian archaeologists recently made a surprising religious discovery in an unusual location: an Ancient Roman bath complex.—
Andrea Margolis,
FOXNews.com,
25 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Portentous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portentous. Accessed 1 Jun. 2025.
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