1
as in forerunner
something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event
a red sky in the morning can be a portent of a coming storm
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2
as in miracle
something extraordinary or surprising
a scout was sent to have a look at this teenage pitcher who was supposed to be the latest portent of the baseball world
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of portent
Cleveland scored on the very next play, the portent of a wild night to come.
2.
—
Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 2 Dec. 2024
Its peaceful stillness and silence can become desolation, and its beautiful bleakness a portent of doom.
—Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 22 Nov. 2024
Valya and her sister Tula (Olivia Williams) have high hopes for their new recruit, who Valya is convinced is part of the prophecy, but Sister Kasha, who’s mentored Ynez under Corrino, has been gripped by disturbing portents of things to come.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 17 Nov. 2024
Don’t believe the mainstream media’s portents that Trump will destroy the country, the rule of law and the Statue of Liberty in one stoke.
—Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for portent 
Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 2 Dec. 2024
Its peaceful stillness and silence can become desolation, and its beautiful bleakness a portent of doom.
—Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 22 Nov. 2024
Valya and her sister Tula (Olivia Williams) have high hopes for their new recruit, who Valya is convinced is part of the prophecy, but Sister Kasha, who’s mentored Ynez under Corrino, has been gripped by disturbing portents of things to come.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 17 Nov. 2024
Don’t believe the mainstream media’s portents that Trump will destroy the country, the rule of law and the Statue of Liberty in one stoke.
—Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for portent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portent
Noun
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Punk and Emo, the forerunners of today’s worm-mollusks, lived on the dark seafloor amid gardens of sponges, nearly 200 million years before the first dinosaurs emerged on land.—
Kate Golembiewski,
New York Times,
8 Jan. 2025
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The company's North American forerunner, Chrysler, has been left for dead repeatedly over the decades, only to emerge with hit products like minivans in the 1980s and the Dodge Ram pickup in the 1990s.—
Joel Mathis,
theweek,
17 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Tucker attempted an onside kick for Baltimore, but Bills cornerback Rasul Douglas recovered to snuff out any chance of a Ravens miracle.—
Kevin Dotson,
CNN,
19 Jan. 2025
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Test yourself on miracle flights, theatrical triumphs and athletic aces in this week's American Culture Quiz.—
Fox News Staff,
Fox News,
19 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The temptation to read the white things of this novel as metaphors or omens is hard to resist.—
Judith Shulevitz,
The Atlantic,
14 Jan. 2025
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Based on the omens and mathematical trends the next successful United manager isn't due for a while.—
Charlotte Harpur,
The Athletic,
23 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Here are some worth trying and vital things to know about this psychiatric phenomenon.—
Cathy Habas,
SELF,
17 Jan. 2025
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His television series Twin Peaks (1990–91, 2017) further cemented his reputation, becoming a cultural phenomenon with its blend of soap opera melodrama, supernatural intrigue, and quirky humor.—
Darryn King,
Forbes,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
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However, like the Mellotron, it can be considered a precursor to the synthesizer.—
Angelica Frey,
JSTOR Daily,
15 Jan. 2025
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The petition — which itself isn’t a lawsuit but a precursor — was withdrawn this week.—
Mia Sato,
The Verge,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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In Tucson, though, urban living sits side-by-side with the natural wonders of Saguaro National Park.—
Sarah Cahalan,
Travel + Leisure,
23 Jan. 2025
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The Panama Canal was designated one of the seven wonders of the modern world in 1994.—
Erika Angulo,
NBC News,
23 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The thought of our freedom to get outside and mingle being suppressed has a foreshadowing of doom that has smothered the enchantment of snow days.—
Sherry Kuehl,
Kansas City Star,
22 Jan. 2025
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This was a fair description of some elements in the Antall government—and a prescient foreshadowing of the populist style that Orban himself would later adopt.—
PAUL LENDVAI,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Aug. 2019
Noun
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Back to Ichiro, who was simply a marvel for literal decades.—
Chris Branch,
The Athletic,
22 Jan. 2025
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But Kern’s score is a marvel of variety, invention and emotion.—
Jesse Green,
New York Times,
16 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near portent
Cite this Entry
“Portent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portent. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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