ominate means to be an omen for (something); to foreshow, to presage. It carries an Arena rating of 1663, earned across 39 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, ominate ranks #588 of 17,151 for The Improbable, #1,872 of 17,131 for Scariest Words, #2,606 of 17,132 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #3,177 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words.
ominate is pronounced /ˈɒmɪneɪt/.
Why “ominate” is a great word
OMINATE — [Verb] To foretell or presage an event by interpreting a specific omen. From Latin ōminātus, past participle of ōminārī ("to presage"), from ōmen ("sign, omen"). Unlike "predict," which suggests a reasoned forecast from data, or "portend," which implies a general, ominous foreboding, to ominate is the ceremonial act of reading fate in the world's marginalia. It is the augur scrutinizing the flight of birds, the haruspex examining entrails, or the sudden, scentless chill that moves through a sunlit room—a quiet archaeology of the future, conducted in the present's broken artifacts.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin ominātus, perfect active participle of ominor (“to presage”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from omen.
verb
- To be an omen for (something); to foreshow, to presage.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.