browse words by letter
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
n
o
p
q
r
s
t
u
v
w
x
y
z
portentous |
2 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Portentous \Por*tent"ous\, a. [L. portentosus.] 1. Of the nature of a portent; containing portents; foreshadowing, esp. foreshadowing ill; ominous. For I believe, they are portentous things --Shak. Victories of strange and almost portentous splendor. --Macaulay. 2. Hence: Monstrous; prodigious; wonderful; dreadful; as a beast of portentous size. --Roscommon. -- {Por*tent"ous*ly}, adv -- {Por*tent"ous*ness}, n. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: portentous adj 1: of momentous or ominous significance; "such a portentous...monster raised all my curiosity"- Herman Melville; "a prodigious vision" [syn: {prodigious}] 2: of ominous significance [syn: {fateful}, {foreboding(a)}] 3: puffed up with vanity; "a grandiloquent and boastful manner"; "overblown oratory"; "a pompous speech"; "pseudo-scientific gobbledygook and pontifical hooey"- Newsweek [syn: {grandiloquent}, {overblown}, {pompous}, {pontifical}]
more about portentous