Betoken Definition

bĭ-tōkən
betokened, betokens
verb
betokened, betokens
To be or give a sign of.
American Heritage
To be a token or sign of; indicate; show.
Webster's New World
To show beforehand; presage.
Webster's New World

Signify by some visible object; show by signs or tokens.

Wiktionary

Foreshow by present signs; indicate something future by that which is seen or known.

Wiktionary
Synonyms:

Origin of Betoken

  • From Middle English bitoknen, bitacnen, from Old English betācnian (“to betoken, signify, designate”), equivalent to be- +‎ token. Cognate with Dutch betekenen (“to mean, signify”), German bezeichnen (“to call, designate”), Swedish beteckna (“to represent, designate, indicate”).

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English bitoknen bi- be- toknen to signify (from Old English tācnian deik- in Indo-European roots)

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

Betoken Sentence Examples

  • The eyes, slightly cast down, betoken an attitude of thoughtfulness; the forehead is clear and open; the mouth indicates firmness and resolution.

  • The glare of these seemed to the allies to betoken the familiar device of lighting fires previous to a retreat, and thus confirmed them in the impression which Napoleon's calculated timidity had given.

  • Superstition as to the appearance of the pie still survives even among many educated persons, and there are several versions of a rhyming adage as to the various turns of luck which its presenting itself, either alone or in company with others, is supposed to betoken, though all agree that the sight of a single pie presages sorrow.

Find Similar Words

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Words Starting With

BBEBET

Words Ending With

NENKEN

Unscrambles

betoken

Words Starting With B and Ending With N

Starts With B & Ends With NStarts With BE & Ends With NStarts With B & Ends With EN

Word Length

7 Letter Words7 Letter Words Starting With B7 Letter Words Ending With N