Portentous — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

of momentous or ominous significance; - Herman Melville

ominously prophetic

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/pɔːɹtˈɛntəs/

🇬🇧British English

/pɔːtˈɛntəs/

🇮🇳Indian English

/pɔːtˈɛntəs/

3 syllables Say it as /pɔːɹtˈɛntəs/.

Examples

such a portentous...monster raised all my curiosity
a prodigious vision
a grandiloquent and boastful manner

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

pompous foreboding fateful overblown pontifical prodigious grandiloquent

Parts of Speech

adjective	of momentous or ominous significance; - Herman Melville “such a portentous...monster raised all my curiosity”
adjective	ominously prophetic
adjective	puffed up with vanity; ; ; ; - Newsweek “a grandiloquent and boastful manner”

Word Forms

portent	noun	a sign of something about to happen
prodigy	noun	a sign of something about to happen
pomp	noun	cheap or pretentious or vain display
pomposity	noun	lack of elegance as a consequence of being pompous and puffed up with vanity
pompousness	noun	lack of elegance as a consequence of being pompous and puffed up with vanity

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

unheilvoll

von bedeutsamer oder bedrohlicher Bedeutung; - Herman Melville

🇫🇷French

de mauvais augure

d'une importance capitale ou inquiétante; -Herman Melville

🇪🇸Spanish

portentoso

de importancia trascendental u siniestra; -Herman Melville

🇮🇹Italian

portentoso

di significato importante o inquietante; -Hermann Melville

🇳🇱Dutch

onheilspellend

van gedenkwaardige of onheilspellende betekenis; - Herman Melville

🇵🇹Portuguese

portentoso

de significado importante ou ameaçador; -Herman Melville

🇷🇺Russian

знаменательный

имеющее важное или зловещее значение; - Герман Мелвилл

India

🇮🇳Hindi

अमंगल

महत्वपूर्ण या अशुभ महत्व का; - हरमन मेलविल

🇧🇩Bengali

লক্ষণীয়

গুরুত্বপূর্ণ বা অশুভ গুরুত্বের; - হারমান মেলভিল

🇮🇳Tamil

பகட்டான

முக்கியமான அல்லது அச்சுறுத்தும் முக்கியத்துவம்; - ஹெர்மன் மெல்வில்லே

🇮🇳Telugu

మహత్తరమైన

ముఖ్యమైన లేదా అరిష్ట ప్రాముఖ్యత; - హెర్మన్ మెల్విల్లే

🇮🇳Marathi

आश्चर्यकारक

महत्त्वपूर्ण किंवा अशुभ महत्त्व; - हरमन मेलविले

🇮🇳Gujarati

ભયાનક

ક્ષણિક અથવા અશુભ મહત્વ; - હર્મન મેલવિલે

🇮🇳Kannada

ಮುನ್ಸೂಚಕ

ಮಹತ್ವಪೂರ್ಣ ಅಥವಾ ಅಶುಭ ಪ್ರಾಮುಖ್ಯತೆ; - ಹರ್ಮನ್ ಮೆಲ್ವಿಲ್ಲೆ

🇮🇳Malayalam

പ്രകടമായ

സുപ്രധാനമായ അല്ലെങ്കിൽ അശുഭകരമായ പ്രാധാന്യം; - ഹെർമൻ മെൽവിൽ

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਸੰਕੇਤਕ

ਮਹੱਤਵਪੂਰਣ ਜਾਂ ਅਸ਼ੁਭ ਮਹੱਤਵ ਦਾ; - ਹਰਮਨ ਮੇਲਵਿਲ

🇵🇰Urdu

دلکش

اہم یا ناگوار اہمیت کا؛ - ہرمن میلویل

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

不祥的

具有重大或不祥的意义； ——赫尔曼·梅尔维尔

🇯🇵Japanese

不吉な

重大な、または不吉な意味を持つもの。 - ハーマン・メルヴィル

🇰🇷Korean

놀랄 만한

중대하거나 불길한 의미를 지닌 것, - 허먼 멜빌

🇻🇳Vietnamese

điềm gở

có ý nghĩa quan trọng hoặc đáng ngại; - Herman Melville

🇹🇭Thai

มีความหมาย

ที่มีความสำคัญอย่างยิ่งยวดหรือเป็นลางไม่ดี; - เฮอร์แมน เมลวิลล์

🇮🇩Indonesian

menakjubkan

mempunyai arti penting atau tidak menyenangkan; - Herman Melville

🇵🇭Filipino

kahanga-hanga

ng napakahalaga o nagbabala na kahalagahan; - Herman Melville

🇲🇾Malay

luar biasa

yang penting atau tidak menyenangkan; - Herman Melville

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

منذر

ذات أهمية بالغة أو مشؤومة؛ - هيرمان ملفيل

🇮🇷Persian

مهم

دارای اهمیت مهم یا شوم؛ - هرمان ملویل

🇹🇷Turkish

uğursuz

çok önemli veya uğursuz bir öneme sahip; -Herman Melville

🇮🇱Hebrew

מעורר פחד

בעל משמעות מכרעת או מבשרת רעות; הרמן מלוויל

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'portentous'?

The primary meaning of 'portentous' is 'of momentous or ominous significance; - Herman Melville'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'portentous' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'portentous' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'portentous' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'portentous' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'portentous' in your daily reading?

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Do you find 'portentous' easy to spell?

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In your opinion, does the word 'portentous' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

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Which age group is most likely to use 'portentous' in regular conversations?

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How likely are you to use 'portentous' in a professional email?

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