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por·tend

(pôr-tĕnd)

tr.v. por·tend·ed, por·tend·ing, por·tends

1. To serve as an omen or a warning of; presage: black clouds that portend a storm.

2. To indicate by prediction; forecast: leading economic indicators that portend a recession.

[Middle English portenden, from Latin portendere; see ten- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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