ill-boding

adjective

ˈil-ˈbō-diŋ How to pronounce ill-boding (audio)
Definition of ill-bodingnext
as in ominous
being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come in an ill-boding turn of events, the government began rounding up political dissidents

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ill-boding
  1. ominous
  2. sinister
  3. menacing
Adjective
  • Something ominous, if not entirely novel, is taking shape in Washington.
    David Remnick, The New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2025
  • In the winter, the opening acts like a chimney for the warmer water below, giving the spring a steaming underworld look and its ominous name.
    Kelsey Glennon, Southern Living, 12 Jan. 2025
Definition of ominous
Adjective
  • Feathers tends to wear cutesy disguises, but comes across as a surprisingly sinister creature who is always observing.
    Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 9 Jan. 2025
  • Now the star and filmmaker are trading Wakanda and the boxing ring for an original vision: a Depression-era vampire movie about twin brothers (Jordan plays both) who return to their Deep South hometown, only to find something sinister waiting.
    A.A. Dowd, Vulture, 6 Jan. 2025
Definition of sinister
Adjective
  • That inter-zone between the two is where Lynch lived his entire professional life: in his paintings and writings, shorts and TV shows, and even his daily online weather reports, which somehow took on both a boyish and a menacing quality.
    David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Jan. 2025
  • The first of them holds all of the story’s promise, as a tense prologue introduces us to a pre-teen kid named Blake, whose military-like father (Sam Jaeger, all menacing toxic machismo) is hell-bent upon teaching his son how to survive the world on his own.
    David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 15 Jan. 2025
Definition of menacing
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near ill-boding

ill-beings

ill-boding

ill-bred

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Cite this Entry

“Ill-boding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ill-boding. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.

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