How to Use portend in a Sentence

portend

verb
  • The distant thunder portended a storm.
  • If you're superstitious, a black cat portends trouble.
  • That seemed to portend good things for the United States.
    Alexis C. Madrigal, The Atlantic, 15 Aug. 2021
  • Would seem to portend good things in the postseason for the NFC's No. 2 seed.
    Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 9 Jan. 2023
  • The disputes in Chongqing and Hangzhou could portend more unrest to come.
    Muyi Xiao, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2023
  • But does the war portend the end of the post-Cold War era of heightened globalization?
    Howard Lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Apr. 2022
  • The tougher question is what these findings might portend.
    Alex Hutchinson, Outside Online, 31 Dec. 2021
  • His sentiment could portend a rocky road for some of the reforms.
    Brittany Wallman, sun-sentinel.com, 30 Aug. 2021
  • But what does that portend for the next two years, legislatively?
    NBC News, 13 Nov. 2022
  • That doesn’t portend well for your wallet this Valentine’s Day.
    Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 13 Feb. 2024
  • Did that continue this year, and does that portend anything for next year?
    Galen Druke, ABC News, 19 Dec. 2023
  • But many now fear that the arrests portend a broader crackdown.
    Valerie Hopkins, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2024
  • If that doesn't portend a more NWA-centric agenda, what could?
    Arkansas Online, 17 Nov. 2022
  • And the way Clemson arrived on the scene and stayed could portend exactly what the Bulldogs are preparing to do.
    cleveland, 9 Nov. 2022
  • But there was always the buzz of helicopters above, portending the next raid.
    Hilary Beaumont, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2023
  • What food could cause such joy or portend such disaster?
    Sarah Schutte, National Review, 24 Dec. 2023
  • The graveyard opening alone portends dread, obsession and fates that are already too late to be turned away from.
    Mikal Gilmore, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2023
  • The Texas controversy might portend a new dominance by the justices on the far right.
    Joan Biskupic, CNN, 2 Sep. 2021
  • Totally disappointing and does not portend well for the rest of the season.
    Alexis Pereira, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2021
  • The appointment could portend a new era for the business news cable channel.
    Elvia Limón, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2022
  • What does that portend for legislation in the coming year?
    Tax Notes Staff, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2023
  • Although omicron is spreading fast in South Africa, that might not portend a severe threat in the United States.
    John Wayne Ferguson, San Antonio Express-News, 13 Dec. 2021
  • The reopening comes just as the holiday season ramps up, which could boost shopping -- and might portend long waits in line.
    Wendy Fry, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Nov. 2021
  • The trend suggests that consumers still are willing and able to use their cards, portending well for retailers.
    Telis Demos, WSJ, 25 Nov. 2023
  • But the tide of war was not going in Britain’s favor, which portended danger to those who had sought freedom behind its army’s lines.
    Francine Uenuma, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 June 2023
  • But where fat accumulates in the body can portend how said fat impacts our overall health.
    Fiorella Valdesolo, Vogue, 16 Aug. 2023
  • And while the past two flu seasons have been tamed by the efforts to slow Covid, Australia is in the midst of a severe flu season, which can often portend what the U.S. season will look like.
    Andrew Joseph, STAT, 17 Aug. 2022
  • The move to weekly episodes does not, however, necessarily portend a longer run for The Problem in the spring.
    Rick Porter, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Feb. 2022
  • This tiny hatchback portends a new electric model that will almost surely be called the ID.2.
    Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 15 Mar. 2023
  • August fog means a snowy winter, and low beehives portend a blizzard.
    Corey Buhay, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Oct. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'portend.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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