Word of the Day

: February 2, 2025

presage

verb PRESS-ij

What It Means

To presage something is to give or be a sign that it will happen in the future. Presage is a formal synonym of foreshadow, foretell, and predict.

// The sudden gloom and ominous dark clouds clearly presaged a nasty storm.

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presage in Context

“What we’re really looking for are handsome, vigorous chickens who do well in cold climes. … Adding birds of different breeds presaged an important change in our understanding: now that it was easier to tell birds apart, the distinct personalities of individuals began to reveal themselves more clearly.” — Sy Montgomery, What the Chicken Knows: A New Appreciation of the World’s Most Familiar Bird, 2024

Did You Know?

Although sages, being known for their great wisdom, are sometimes believed to possess the ability to predict the future, there is no connection between the noun sage and the verb presage, which means—as you’ve likely foreseen—“to foretell or predict.” While sage comes from the Latin verb sapere (“to be wise”), presage comes instead from a different Latin source: the adjective praesagus, a combination of the prefix prae and sagus, meaning “prophetic.” Presage entered English first as a noun referring to an omen, that is, something that foreshadows or portends a future event. A couple of centuries later it was joined by the verb, which is used for the action of foreshadowing, as in “the current economic slowdown could presage another recession,” and may apply to suggesting a coming event or indicating its likelihood.