portentous

adjective
UK: /pɔːˈtentəs/
US: /pɔːrˈtentəs/

  1. Ominously significant or indicative, especially with regard to the future; foreshadowing important events.

    1. The dark clouds looked portentous.
    2. The silence before the storm felt portentous, hinting at the chaos to come and the portentous change in weather.

  2. Pompously or affectedly solemn; trying to seem very important, serious, or impressive.

    1. His speech was quite portentous.
    2. The actor delivered his lines in a portentous manner, clearly trying to impress the audience with his portentous performance.

Synonyms

ominous threatening ill-omened significant solemn pompous

Frequently Asked Questions

The word "portentous" in English means: Ominously significant or indicative, especially with regard to the future; foreshadowing important events., Pompously or affectedly solemn; trying to seem very important, serious, or impressive..

The phonetic transcription of "portentous" is /pɔːˈtentəs/ in British English and /pɔːrˈtentəs/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "portentous": ominous, threatening, ill-omened, significant, solemn, pompous.

Example usage of "portentous": "The dark clouds looked portentous.". More examples on the page.