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Omen vs Portent - What's the difference?

omen | portent |

As nouns the difference between omen and portent

is that omen is something which portends or is perceived to portend a good or evil event or circumstance in the future; an augury or foreboding while portent is something that portends an event about to occur, especially an unfortunate or evil event; an omen.

As a verb omen

is to be an omen of.

omen

English

Noun

(en noun) (wikipedia omen)
  • Something which portends or is perceived to portend a good or evil event or circumstance in the future; an augury or foreboding.
    • the ghost's appearance was an ill omen
    a rise in imports might be an omen of recovery
    the egg has, during the span of history, represented mystery, magic, medicine, food and omen
  • * 1856 , (Gustave Flaubert), (Madame Bovary), Part III Chapter X, translated by Eleanor Marx-Aveling
    • Day broke. He saw three black hens asleep in a tree. He shuddered, horrified at this omen . Then he promised the Holy Virgin three chasubles for the church, and that he would go barefooted from the cemetery at Bertaux to the chapel of Vassonville.
  • prophetic significance
    • a sign of ill omen

    Usage notes

    * Adjectives often applied to "omen": good, ill, bad, auspicious, evil, favorable, happy, lucky.

    Synonyms

    * portent, sign, signal, token, forewarning, warning, danger sign, foreshadowing, prediction, forecast, prophecy, harbinger, augury, auspice, presage, straw in the wind, (hand)writing on the wall, indication, hint, foretoken; see also

    Related terms

    * ominous

    Verb

  • To be an omen of.
  • To divine or predict from omens.

    • Synonyms

    * prognosticate, betoken, forecast, foretell, portend, foreshadow, bode, augur, prefigure, predict, auspicate, presage

    See also

    * augury * foreboding * portend * portent

    External links

    * *

    Anagrams

    * ----

    portent

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Something that portends an event about to occur, especially an unfortunate or evil event; an omen.
  • A portending; significance; as, a howl of dire portent.
  • Something regarded as portentous; a marvel; prodigy.

    • Synonyms

    * See also

    Related terms

    * portend * portentous