ominous

Intermediatezipf 3.40

Pronunciation

/ˈɒmɪnəs/(OM-in-us)

Part of speech

adjectiveneutral

Chinese

不祥的；预兆凶险的

Definition

Suggesting that something bad is going to happen; threatening.

Word family

  • ominously/ˈɒmɪnəsli/(adv)不祥地
  • omen/ˈəʊmən/(n)预兆

Collocations

  • ominous sign
  • ominous warning
  • ominous silence
  • ominous clouds

Examples

  1. 1.Dark clouds gathered, creating an ominous sky. (threatening)
  2. 2.There was an ominous silence before the announcement. (suggesting bad news)

Synonyms

  • threatening/ˈθrɛtnɪŋ/— showing danger
  • sinister/ˈsɪnɪstə/— suggesting evil
  • foreboding/fɔːˈbəʊdɪŋ/— feeling something bad will happen

Etymology

from Latin "ominosus" — "omen" = sign/portent — full of bad signs