to portend
13
8.4
- verb
- /pɔrˈtɛnd/
- Formal
:
presagiar
- The dark clouds in the sky portend a heavy storm coming our way.
- portend changes
- portend the future
- portend adverse consequences
And when you see that growth curve that portends, you know, optimism for the future.
- And when you see that growth curve that portends, you know, optimism for the future.
Examples
-
But what does this neoliberal project portend for democratic accountability and institutional checks and balances?
Academic text (1991) -
And each has staked out his position in ways that portend where our country is divided right now.
-
What does what happens here in Oakland portend for the rest of the nation?
-
Numerous outcomes are possible, few of which portend well for regional stability.
Academic text (2012) -
And to talk about what it portends, good and bad, for all of us, in both the short and the long term.
-
It's not hard to see why this also portends ill for science careers at a personal level.
Academic text (2003) -
Despite continuing collaborative efforts, policy differences portend continuing tension in the relationship between these associations.
Academic text (2000) -
Does the growing influence of the military in national-security decisions portend a crisis in civil-military relations?
Academic text (2001) -
Folklore has it that cicadas singing on a summer morning portend a hot day.
Academic text (2002) -
The Soviet leader's initial meeting with President Bush in 1989 also portended better U.S.-Soviet relations.
Academic text (1996)
Synonyms
812
3.0
To say what will happen in the future
138
3.0
To show that something exists or may happen
54
2.5
To say what will probably happen using information, for example about weather or business
41
7.0
To say what will happen in the future
28
7.4
To say what will happen in the future, often claiming it comes from a god
16
6.2
To give a small sign that something will happen in the future
16
7.2
To be a sign that something good or bad will happen
7
5.8
To happen earlier and show what will come later
5
8.8
To show that something bad will happen
4
8.6
To be a sign that something will happen
3
9.3
To say what will happen in the future using clues
1
9.3
To be a sign of something
1
8.0
To be a sign that something will happen later
1
6.0
Show that something important is coming
To seem to show that something bad will happen
To show that something will happen soon
Predict an event from a sign or dream
To say what will happen in the future because someone has spiritual power
To say what will happen by reading signs
How Ominous
Surface Forms
Etymology
Portend comes from Latin parts pro- 'before' and tend 'to stretch', the same tend you see in extend. So, to portend is like something 'stretching forward' to give a sign or warning of what will happen.