CEFR B2

portentous

adjective

Meaning

portentous means of momentous or ominous significance. It can have more than one sense, so use the alternate meanings and examples to choose the meaning that matches your sentence.

Examples

The writer described the response as portentous.
A portentous tone can change the mood of a conversation.

Synonyms: foreshadowing, predictive, premonitory, prognosticatory, momentous

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portentous (B2)

adjective

Pronunciation: /pɔː(ɹ)ˈtɛntəs/

Definition

portentous means of momentous or ominous significance. It can have more than one sense, so use the alternate meanings and examples to choose the meaning that matches your sentence.

Examples

The writer described the response as portentous.
A portentous tone can change the mood of a conversation.
The situation became portentous after the announcement.

How to Use portentous

portentous + noun (collocation): Use portentous before a noun to describe that quality. — "The writer described a portentous reaction."
become portentous (collocation): Use after become, seem, or be for a state or quality. — "The discussion became portentous near the end."

Synonyms of portentous

Words with a similar meaning to portentous:

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