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Dread vs Ominous - What's the difference?

dread | ominous |

As adjectives the difference between dread and ominous

is that dread is terrible; greatly feared while ominous is of or pertaining to an omen or to omens; being or exhibiting an omen; significant.

As a verb dread

is to fear greatly.

As a noun dread

is great fear in view of impending evil; fearful apprehension of danger; anticipatory terror.

dread

English

Verb

(en verb)
  • To fear greatly.
  • To anticipate with fear.
    • I'm dreading getting the results of the test, as it could decide my whole life.
  • * 1877 , (Anna Sewell), (Black Beauty) Chapter 22[http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Black_Beauty/22]
    • Day by day, hole by hole our bearing reins were shortened, and instead of looking forward with pleasure to having my harness put on as I used to do, I began to dread it.
  • To be in dread, or great fear.
  • * Bible, Deuteronomy i. 29
    • Dread not, neither be afraid of them.

    Derived terms

    * dreadable * dreadworthy

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Great fear in view of impending evil; fearful apprehension of danger; anticipatory terror.
  • * Tillotson
    • the secret dread of divine displeasure
  • * Shakespeare
    • the dread of something after death
  • * '>citation
  • Reverential or respectful fear; awe.
  • * Bible, Genesis ix 2.
    • The fear of you, and the dread of you, shall be upon every beast of the earth.
  • * Shakespeare
    • His sceptre shows the force of temporal power, / The attribute to awe and majesty, / Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings.
  • Somebody or something dreaded.
  • (obsolete) A person highly revered.
  • * Spenser
    • Una, his dear dread
  • (obsolete) Fury; dreadfulness.
    • (Spenser)
  • A Rastafarian.
  • (chiefly, in the plural) dreadlock

    • Adjective

    (er)
  • Terrible; greatly feared.
  • (archaic) Awe-inspiring; held in fearful awe.
  • *

    • See also

    * dreadlocks * dreadnought

    Anagrams

    * * *

    ominous

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Of or pertaining to an omen or to omens; being or exhibiting an omen; significant.
  • Specifically, giving indication of a coming ill; being an evil omen; threatening; portentous; inauspicious.
  • * California poll support for Jerry Brown's tax increases has ominous implications for U.S. taxpayers too Los Angeles Times Headline April 25, 2011
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2012 , date=April 29 , author=Nathan Rabin , title=TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Treehouse of Horror III” (season 4, episode 5; originally aired 10/29/1992) citation , page= , passage=The idea of a merchant selling both totems of pure evil and frozen yogurt (he calls it frogurt!) is amusing in itself, as is the idea that frogurt could be cursed, but it’s really the Shopkeeper’s quicksilver shift from ominous doomsaying to chipper salesmanship that sells the sequence.}}

    Usage notes

    * Formerly used both in a favorable and unfavorable sense; now chiefly in the latter; foreboding or foreshadowing evil; inauspicious; as, an ominous dread. * Nouns to which "ominous" is often applied: sign, silence, warning, cloud, note, sound, shadow, threat, music, tone, implication, message, presence, development, voice, portent, turn, sky, figure, dream, event, trend, change, day, beginning, growl, cry, signal, pattern.

    Synonyms

    * portentous * threatening

    Derived terms

    * ominously * ominousness

    Related terms

    * omen

    External links

    * *