portend

Portend is defined as to be a warning or signal of.

(verb)

When rain clouds warn of rain, this is an example of a time when the clouds portend rain.

See portend in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb

Origin: ME portenden < L portendere < por-, akin to per, through + tendere, to stretch: see thin

See portend in American Heritage Dictionary 4

transitive verb por·tend·ed, por·tend·ing, por·tends

To serve as an omen or a warning of; presage: black clouds that portend a storm.
To indicate by prediction; forecast: leading economic indicators that portend a recession.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English portenden

Origin: , from Latin portendere; see ten- in Indo-European roots

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