presage

See also: pressage, présage, and présagé

English

WOTD – 4 May 2016

Alternative forms

præsage (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English presage, from Latin praesāgium.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˈpɹɛsɪdʒ/, /pɹɪˈseɪdʒ/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Rhymes: -ɛsɪdʒ, -eɪdʒ
Hyphenation: pre‧sage

Noun

presage (plural presages)

A warning of a future event; an omen.
- a. 1786, [Richard Glover], “Book the Twenty-eighth”, in [Mrs. Halsey], editor, The Athenaid, a Poem, […], volume III, London: […] T[homas] Cadell, […], published 1787, →OCLC, page 213, lines 354–357:
  Speak frankly, Mirzes—nor believe thy words, / Whatever black preſages they contain, / Subjoin'd to all Trophonius hath foretold, / Can change my firm reſolves, or blunt my ſword.
An intuition of a future event; a presentiment.
- 1855, Robert Browning, “‘Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came.’”, in Men and Women […], volume I, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, stanza 22, page 143:
  Glad was I when I reached the other bank. / Now for a better country. Vain presage!

Translations

warning; omen

Bulgarian: знамение (bg) n (znamenie), поличба (bg) f (poličba)
Catalan: presagi (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 预兆 (zh) (yùzhào), 征兆 (zh) (zhēngzhào)
Czech: předzvěst f
Dutch: voorteken (nl)
Finnish: enne (fi)
French: présage (fr) m
Georgian: ცუდი წინათგრძნობის ქონა (cudi c̣inatgrʒnobis kona)
Greek: προμήνυμα (el) n (promínyma)
Italian: presagio (it)
Ottoman Turkish: اوغور (uğur) (a favorable one)
Romanian: avertiza (ro), prefigura (ro)
Russian: предзнаменова́ние (ru) n (predznamenovánije)
Spanish: presagio (es) m
Ukrainian: передві́стя n (peredvístja)

intuition; presentiment

Bulgarian: предчувствие (bg) n (predčuvstvie)
Catalan: presagi (ca) m, intuïció (ca) f
Chinese:
Mandarin: 预感 (zh) (yùgǎn)
Czech: předtucha f
Dutch: voorgevoel (nl)
Finnish: aavistus (fi)
Georgian: წინათგრძნობა (c̣inatgrʒnoba)
Romanian: inituiție n, presentiment (ro) n, prefigura (ro)
Russian: предчу́вствие (ru) n (predčúvstvije)
Spanish: presentimiento (es) m, intuición (es) f

Verb

presage (third-person singular simple present presages, present participle presaging, simple past and past participle presaged)

(transitive) To predict or foretell something.
- c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:
  (Q2 version):
  If I may truſt the flattering truth of ſleepe, / My dreames preſage ſome ioyfull newes at hand : / My boſomes L. ſits lightly in his throne : / And all this day an vnaccuſtom’d ſpirit, / Lifts me aboue the ground with cheatfull thoughts […]
- 2012 November 7, Matt Bai, “Winning a second term, Obama will confront familiar headwinds”, in The New York Times‎^[1]:
  That brief moment after the election four years ago, when many Americans thought Mr. Obama’s election would presage a new, less fractious political era, now seems very much a thing of the past.
(intransitive) To make a prediction.
(transitive) To have a presentiment of; to feel beforehand; to foreknow.

Synonyms

Translations

to predict or foretell something

Bulgarian: предсказвам (bg) (predskazvam)
Czech: být předzvěstí, předpovídat (cs) impf
Dutch: voorspellen (nl), aankondigen (nl)
Finnish: ennustaa (fi)
Latin: ōminor
Spanish: presagiar (es)

to make a prediction

Bulgarian: предвещавам (bg) (predveštavam)
Finnish: ennustaa (fi)
Spanish: predecir (es)

to have a presentiment of

Bulgarian: предчувствам (bg) (predčuvstvam)
Czech: věštit impf
Dutch: een voorgevoel hebben, voorvoelen (nl)
Finnish: aavistaa (fi), uumoilla (fi), ounastella (fi)
Spanish: presentir (es)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

French: ^{(please verify)} présager (fr)

Anagrams

asperge, preages, sperage