1
as in prediction
a declaration that something will happen in the future
a yearbook augury that of all the graduates, he would be the most likely to succeed
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2
as in omen
something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event
some people believe that a broken mirror is an augury of seven years' bad luck
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3
as in divination
the art or practice of foretelling future events by interpreting omens
the gift of augury that Nostradamus purportedly possessed
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of augury
Within its air of metropolitan disdain lurked an augury of England’s post-Brexit identity crisis, in which the country appears permanently torn between the deflating liberal dreams still harbored in the cities and the backlash fermenting in the provinces left behind.
—
Henry Wismayer, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2021
Her first food was fish skin, blackened and reeking of the sea—augury foreshadowing her fearlessness, her love of swimming, her appetites.
—Aria Beth Sloss, Bon Appétit, 22 Mar. 2022
As with all augury, there's room for interpretation.
—Matthew Askari, Car and Driver, 28 June 2022
During the past 14 years of drought, the Colorado River Delta has been a living augury of the Colorado River and the ever-expanding swell of Southwesterners who depend on it.
—The Editors, Outside Online, 23 Dec. 2014
See All Example Sentences for augury
Henry Wismayer, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2021
Her first food was fish skin, blackened and reeking of the sea—augury foreshadowing her fearlessness, her love of swimming, her appetites.
—Aria Beth Sloss, Bon Appétit, 22 Mar. 2022
As with all augury, there's room for interpretation.
—Matthew Askari, Car and Driver, 28 June 2022
During the past 14 years of drought, the Colorado River Delta has been a living augury of the Colorado River and the ever-expanding swell of Southwesterners who depend on it.
—The Editors, Outside Online, 23 Dec. 2014
See All Example Sentences for augury
Recent Examples of Synonyms for augury
Noun
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As long as there have been predictions of the future, people have envisioned robots taking over their outdoor chores.—
Anthony Karcz,
Forbes,
28 Feb. 2025
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According to the prediction: Dallas Cowboys RB Raheem Mostert The Cowboys are another team with cap issues, and Jerry Jones' team hasn't been interested in spending much in recent offseasons.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Throughout most of human history, many cultures have thought such phenomena were ill omens caused by supernatural beings.—
Emily Matchar,
Smithsonian Magazine,
27 Jan. 2025
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In some cultures, they were feared as omens of bad luck or even linked to witchcraft.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
Newsweek,
16 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Spider divination In Cameroon, Mambila spider divination (nggam du)) poses difficult questions to spiders or land crabs that live in holes in the ground.—
Michelle Aroney and David Zeitlyn,
Smithsonian Magazine,
2 Jan. 2025
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Following her magnificent turn as a Sicilian divination witch in Agatha All Along, Patti LuPone is returning to the small screen for another flashy role.—
Nick Romano,
EW.com,
3 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Equally, it was never considered by bid organizers to be a forerunner in bids to host the 2022 and 2026 men’s World Cup, the latter of which was successful and will be shared next year with Canada and Mexico.—
Adam Crafton,
The Athletic,
6 Feb. 2025
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While Cal State Fullerton isn’t the first campus to launch a Project Rebound program, the university has been among the forerunners in its expansion, becoming a model for Project Rebound programs at the other universities in the CSU system.—
Lou Ponsi,
Orange County Register,
28 Jan. 2025
Noun
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This will be the first test of whether the loss of expertise from the cuts and early retirements last week will affect forecast and warning accuracy.—
Emma Way,
Axios,
5 Mar. 2025
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The next budget forecast for the district will take place March 18.—
Nora O’Neill,
Charlotte Observer,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
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In the second, her name was positioned next to a woman watching a monkey on a chain from her window, an unwelcome portent for Tanya.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
16 Feb. 2025
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Jellyfish scrape along the sea floor like spindly mushroom clouds of portent, stinging Sofia who masochistically (and in a way that carries over to her actual human relationships) keeps going back for another dip.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
14 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Hallucinations taken as prophecy, destabilized on a middling journey to outpace, to open-chase, to claim supremacy, to reign indefinitely, haste and paste control altering deletion, unstable desire remains undefeated.—
John Werner,
Forbes,
4 Mar. 2025
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The groundhog made his prediction on Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and delivered his meteorological prophecy in Groundhogese.—
Julia Gomez,
USA TODAY,
2 Feb. 2025
Noun
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In politics, there are liars and better liars How the Biden administration helped avoid a coup in Guatemala China’s meddling in Taiwan election presages year of misinformation threats Need help keeping up with this tumultuous election?—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
12 Jan. 2024
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The New Moon in Virgo, which occurs shortly after Mercury turns direct, presages really big beginnings throughout the zodiac.—
Jennifer Culp,
Them,
16 Aug. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Augury.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/augury. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.
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