1
as in feel
a feeling that something bad will happen
I had a nagging presage that the results of my medical tests would not be good
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in forerunner
something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event
the sight of the first robin is always a welcome presage of spring
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to predict
to tell of or describe beforehand
people used to believe that a comet presaged a major event, such as the death of a king
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of presage
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 1 Nov. 2025
The result is chaos, bewilderment and delay that presages rising consumer prices.
—Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025
Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 5 Apr. 2026
But for the rest, there are some intriguing changes that could presage real success.
—Eno Sarris, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for presage
Noun
For Swain, the rise of directs presages nothing less than a revolution in the world’s financial markets.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 1 Nov. 2025
The result is chaos, bewilderment and delay that presages rising consumer prices.
—Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025
Verb
An index of 50 is balanced and presages neither economic expansion nor contraction.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 5 Apr. 2026
But for the rest, there are some intriguing changes that could presage real success.
—Eno Sarris, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for presage
Recent Examples of Synonyms for presage
Noun
-
Nearby, a fire pit and custom seating make the backyard feel staged for conversation even when nobody’s visiting.—
David Caraccio
May 2,
Sacbee.com,
2 May 2026
-
North Texas started Saturday with a cool and crisp feel, with temperatures in the upper 40s to low 50s.—
Nelly Carreño,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
Radio public affairs broadcasting is seen as a forerunner to television public affairs programming.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
1 May 2026
-
Hungary’s incoming premier today showed investors how austere he is compared to his forerunner.—
Jonathan Tirone,
Bloomberg,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
That’s why looking at birthrates alone to predict the capacity needs of pediatric hospitals isn’t enough, Quiroga said.—
Suzanne King,
Kansas City Star,
2 May 2026
-
House Speaker Matt Ritter of Hartford – one of the top vote-counters at the Capitol – had predicted 115 to 120 votes in favor of the budget, which passed with 127 votes.—
Christopher Keating,
Hartford Courant,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
Again, people have premonitions.—
Mike Ryan,
IndieWire,
4 May 2026
-
At the snap, Wake Forest defensive back Davaughn Patterson fulfilled Joly’s premonition, moving quickly toward the line of scrimmage in an effort to interrupt the tight end’s route out of the backfield.—
Nick Kosmider,
New York Times,
1 May 2026
Noun
-
The company’s example was seen by many as a portent of the AI future.—
Geoff Colvin,
Fortune,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Rather than receiving traditional care, however, Hylton was unwittingly plunged into a cold experiment in using remote work to offset hospital staffing shortages, which could be a grim portent in an age of AI automation.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
And though Fanny released their albums in a post-Stonewall environment, the band’s gay members felt pressured to remain in the closet for fear of losing their record deal or the support of their fans.—
Marissa Lorusso,
Pitchfork,
3 May 2026
-
Lane harrowingly captures the paralyzing fear of being ordinary, while Metcalf will overwhelm you with the sheer emotion of her performance as Willy’s fiercely loyal wife, Linda.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
3 May 2026
Noun
-
Typically, full contact is the precursor to an injured player’s return to game action.—
Jason Beede,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 May 2026
-
To address this, researchers added a two-dimensional perovskite and formamidinium chloride to the precursor solution.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
At the macro scale of society, loss of control seems like a legitimate reason for worry.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
-
Their worry is that investors are treating this economic moment — physical supply disruptions, geopolitical fracturing, tariff whiplash — like the liquidity crises of the past, which were solvable with government cash.—
Rachel Keidan,
semafor.com,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Presage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/presage. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
