Skip to main content
foreboding

foreboding

9 8.0
A strong feeling that something bad is going to happen
  • noun
  • /fɔːrˈboʊdɪŋ/
translation icon : presagio
  • When the phone rang, I had a foreboding of disaster.
  • an ominous foreboding
  • a sense of foreboding

So I leave you with optimism and a kind of foreboding.

Examples

  • "An old man," the boy said, and had a sudden foreboding that he was not going to enjoy the day.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • He woke up trembling with fear and foreboding... and could not sleep for the rest of the night.

  • Yet, as reasonable as that analysis seemed, Anna still had a sense of foreboding.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • A feeling of foreboding was creeping over me.

  • But the meeting of November 4th had a marked air of grim foreboding.

  • Queen Maya was filled with a strange foreboding, as if she knew that she too would not live to see her son's destiny fulfilled.

  • "Is everything all right?" she asked him, disguising her anxious foreboding with lightness.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Looking at it, Jessica felt fear welling inside her, a foreboding that Dillon was a very changed man.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • "Coming back to Liadhe?" asked Kendra when the tears had stopped, though a terrible foreboding gripped her heart.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • As the storm clouds gathered, a sense of foreboding filled the villagers, fearing the worst.

Synonyms

fear
vsforeboding
1.0

An unpleasant feeling of being afraid because something seems dangerous

is specifically a strong sense predicting a future bad event
bad feeling
vsforeboding
76 3.6

A sense that something bad may happen

is a stronger, clearer feeling that misfortune will happen
premonition
vsforeboding
74 7.7

A strong feeling that something bad will happen soon

is the same strong sense without extra nuance
dread
vsforeboding
58 2.8

A strong feeling of fear or worry about something that may happen

is more about an upcoming bad sense rather than general fear
apprehension
vsforeboding
32 4.4

A feeling of fear or worry that something bad may happen

is a firmer sense that a bad event will occur
trepidation
vsforeboding
23 8.1

A feeling of fear or worry about something that may happen

is a more definite sense of an upcoming unpleasant event
sinking feeling
vsforeboding
  • Informal
9 4.5

A sudden strong worry that something bad will happen

is a steady strong sense rather than a sudden pang
presentiment
vsforeboding
1 9.1

A feeling that something bad is about to happen

is the same future warning but stated more as a firm sense
presage
vsforeboding
  • Literature
1 8.7

A sign or feeling that something bad will happen

focuses on the inner sense rather than on outward signs
boding
vsforeboding
1 8.9

A feeling that something bad will happen

is the same feeling but often phrased more generally
apprehensiveness
vsforeboding
7.4

A feeling of worry or fear about something that might happen

is a stronger, clearer sense of an impending bad event

Antonyms

209 2.8

A tendency to expect good results and see the positive side of things

203 2.2

A belief that things will turn out well

How Ominous

premonition
74 7.7
foreboding
9 8.0
suspicion
39 2.3
feeling
1.0
inkling
33 6.1

Surface Forms

foreboding singular
forebodings plural

Morphology

foreboding = forebode (semi-transparent) = fore + bode + ing

The noun is formed from the verb 'forebode' with '-ing'; meaning is predictable from the verb, but 'bode' is relatively rare so the relation may be unclear to learners.

Etymology

The noun foreboding also comes from fore- 'before' and bode 'to warn', the same idea as in forecast. A foreboding is a strong feeling or warning that something bad will happen.